NCIS
by xhookswenchx
Summary: Emma Swan and David Nolan are NCIS agents in Norfolk, VA. For the past few weeks, they have been working a particularly difficult and somewhat dangerous case. (Originally posted on AO3)
1. Week's End

It had been a rough week and Emma was more than ready to just go home and try to unwind. Fridays were usually a time to celebrate the impending weekend, but just like the last two Fridays, Emma was in no mood. Still, David insisted they have a couple drinks, tradition and all.

"Stop thinking about it," he insisted as the bartender refilled his beer. They had been working a particularly frustrating case the past couple weeks and it was always at the forefront of Emma's mind. Someone was toying with them, and it didn't sit well with her. It didn't sit well with David either, but he had a million other things going on that had demanded more of his attention.

"I can't help it, David," she frowned. Three weeks, three victims and no suspect. The most recent incident seemed promising, turning up several leads to follow, but they all turned out to be dead ends. "If we don't catch this guy-" she didn't want to say it, didn't have to say it. They both knew that if something didn't happen, they would spend this coming Monday combing another crime scene.

"We'll get him...or her," David insisted, "but right now, let's focus on unwinding."

Emma smiled, "it's not the same without Mary Margaret here. Tell her to hurry up and have that baby, will ya?"

"As if we have any say in the matter," he laughed, "we still have a good couple weeks before she's due and the kid seems pretty content to enjoy the solitude."

A full glass found its way to Emma. When she looked up at the bartender to protest, he nodded towards a table in the corner, "compliments of the gentleman at table ten."

"Looks like someone's got an admirer," David teased.

"Ballsy," she laughed, "seeing as I'm obviously here with you."

"Be nice," David said, "it's probably just some young sailor-" he stopped talking and Emma followed his gaze to table ten.

Three men sat there, two of them giving the one in the middle a hard time. He offered Emma a shy smile and a wave. If that didn't peg him as her mystery admirer, the shade of red he'd turned gave it away. All three were clean cut and had a look that was unmistakably military. Not that it should surprise her, being at a bar so close to the base and all.

"We're going over," David grabbed her arm, leaving her little choice.

"What? David, no, that'll just encourage them-" she didn't have time to protest, so she grabbed her drink and followed her friend to the table.

"Nolan!" The blonde gentleman shouted as he stood to greet David, "thought you could get away from us, did you?"

David hugged the man and Emma watched as the other two greeted him. Finally, he looked at Emma, "old navy buddies," he explained.

"Ah," Emma nodded, realizing these were the "brothers" he liked to talk about. She looked at the blonde, who very well could have been a sailor, he had the look, but his accent was definitely British.

"Robin Locksley," the blonde said, then he started pointing to his comrades, "Killian Jones, and Jefferson Hatter."

"Emma," she stated, "Swan." She looked at David, "I didn't realize when you said you were in the navy, that you meant the Royal Navy." She elbowed him in the side, "where's your accent?"

"Hey now," Killian, the one sitting in the middle, laughed. Emma smiled, her admirer was British too? "Robs and I are honest to god American citizens." She couldn't help but give the shy flirt a once over. His blue eyes a stark contrast to his dark, almost black hair. His blue button down shirt did little to hide what looked to be a very nice, very toned upper body, and even though he was seated, she could tell the rest of him was probably equally nice. Dammit, when did she go from once over to staring?

"Came over as teens," Robin added, bringing her out of her trance. Killian gave her a knowing grin and she flushed. Did she have to be so damn obvious? "joined the navy together..." Robin continued to talk, seemingly oblivious to the silent conversation going on between emma and his pal.

David laughed, "how long have you three been here?"

"Couple months," Jefferson finally spoke, not British, Emma decided. "Me and Locks, that is. We ran into this loser," he hiked his thumb in Killian's direction, "a couple weeks ago."

"You should have looked me up," David scolded.

"I'm sorry," Killian interrupted, finally taking his eyes off of Emma, "but you left us, mate."

"Yeah," Jefferson agreed, looking at Emma, "this asshole ran off and got married, then decided the Navy life wasn't good enough anymore."

"Sit down," Robin offered and Emma took the seat next to Killian. "We'll tell you the whole, sordid tale." He grabbed a couple more chairs for the table and he and David sat down.

It wasn't long before the boys were wrapped up in conversation and Emma welcomed the distraction. She listened and laughed as she saw a completely different side of her friend. The only one who didn't say much was Killian, who seemed suddenly uneasy.

"Sorry," Killian mumbled, "this can't be fun for you."

"It's fine," she said.

"I mentioned wanting to send a drink your way," he said, "that's when Robin recognized Dave. Quite a feat actually, seeing as the man had his back turned to us almost the whole time you two have been here."

"Jones!" Robin shouted, pulling Killian away from his conversation with Emma, "did you hear this ass? He left the navy and became a fucking NCIS agent."

"You were already a navy cop," Killian let out a hearty laugh, "miss the military life that much?"

"Dammit!" David practically jumped out of his seat when his phone went off. Everyone watched as he read a text, waiting to see what the fuss was. Finally, he stood, "gotta go," he gave Emma an apologetic look, "momma's gotta go to the hospital. Need cab fare?"

"She's early," Emma remarked, Remembering his comment about still having a couple weeks, "but I'm fine."

"Any friend of Dave's is a friend of ours," Robin stated, "we'll get her home."

"They're good guys," he assured her.

"I can handle myself," she laughed, "go get your wife! Tell her I said hi." David nodded and made a quick exit.

"How did you meet numb nuts?" Jefferson asked. Clearly, these guys weren't going to let her escape just because David left.

"Work," she answered.

"No stories?" Robin asked. Oh god, they were the prying type. Now that David was gone, they had a new victim to unleash their line of questioning on.

"It's not very interesting," she admitted, "I helped him with a case and his boss seemed happy with the results and next thing I know NCIS is knocking on my door. Then I met his wife and they sort of adopted me."

"Sounds like Dave," Killian smiled, "he adopted me too."

Emma took a good look at the man who had bought her drink. Amidst all the chatter, he remained soft spoken, only joining in with the occasional smart ass remark. Before David had rushed her over to the table, she was determined to tell the man he was barking up the wrong tree. Now though, she wanted to know why he sent a drink if he wasn't going to follow up. "So," she said, "what's your deal, Killian? You buy a girl a drink and then don't even ask for her number?"

He looked at her and offered that same shy smile she'd seen earlier, "Wasn't sure it would even work."

_Damn_, she thought, _how could it not work? *The man was sexy as hell and there was no way he didn't know it. _"Really?" The shyness had to be an act. His piercing blue eyes alone were enough to draw anyone in.

"He's socially awkward," Robin stated, "hasn't got a bloody clue what to do once a woman actually talks to him."

"Maybe if his pals stopped hijacking the conversation..." She hinted. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jefferson nod towards the bar. Once they were gone, she spoke again, "what's your deal, really?"

"It's been awhile," he shrugged, "Rob's right, I haven't a bloody clue."

Okay, she could understand that, sort of. "I get it," she nodded. So he was going for the sympathy card. Not like he needed it. "Give me your phone." He raised an eyebrow, but didn't question her, handing over his phone. She quickly found her way to his contact list and plugged her name and number in. "There," she said, "now you have my number."

She really didn't know what the hell she was doing. Less than an hour ago, she wanted to send this guy after the bar flies and away from her. Now she was doing what? Flirting? Leading him on? Dammit, David would kill her if she broke his friend's heart.

"I suppose this means you're interested?" He asked, as if he was still unsure.

"I have a kid," she blurted out. Now who was socially awkward? "I mean, you should probably know that if you were actually interested in getting to know me or something..."

Killian nodded, "boy or girl?"

"Boy," she said, trying to read him. What did he want? A hook up? Something more? Maybe the kid thing would scare him off and she wouldn't have to worry about it either way.

"I have a girl," he said, "thought you should know, in case you were actually Interested in getting to know me or something." He smirked as he threw her own words back at her.

Well, fuck.

"Married?" She teased.

"Yes and no," he stammered, as if it was a touchy subject, "she passed away."

Oh. Dammit. That's why it'd been awhile. "Sorry," she said, feeling incredibly stupid about her bad joke.

"You didn't know," he smiled at her, "and like I said, it's been awhile since I've gone out and done something stupid like this. So what about you, Swan? Married? Divorced?"

"Neither," she laughed, "he ditched me before i could make an honest man out of him." What was with the brutal honesty? He didn't need to know the gory details.

"Ouch," he winced, "well, it's not as if my opinion matters, but he's a bloody fool."

_Or a genius_, she thought. "Thanks," she said instead.

"Oy!" Robin shouted from the bar and Emma and Killian both looked over to see him pointing at his watch.

"Damn," Killian frowned and and grabbed his coat and started to fumble around with his pockets for something.

"What's wrong?" Emma asked.

"I have to go," he said, finally finding what he was looking for: car keys. "Still need a ride home?"

"You probably live on base," she said as she got up so he could get out, not sure if she should go with him or just take a cab. She couldn't have the guy going out of his way for her.

"And?" He stood up, "you don't want to catch a ride with those losers," he laughed. "I just need to swing by and grab Addy, then I can take you wherever you need to go."

"Where is she?" Emma asked.

"Robin's house," he said, "his wife watches her and Hat's kid. She offered to sit tonight so we could have a guy's night and catch up, But we all promised we'd return at a decent hour."

She looked over and saw Robin and Jefferson bolt for the door.

"Okay then," she said, "let's go." She followed him to the bar so they could close their tabs and then they were on their way.

_R u ok?_

Emma laughed at the text before replying. David was such a worry wart.

_Yes. Killian is taking me home._

_What?!_

_Fuck! No! MY home. He's dropping me off. _

_Ok_

"What's so funny?" Killian asked as he pulled up into the driveway.

"Overprotective big brother," Emma grinned.

"Definitely Dave," he snickered, "come on."

"You want me to come in with you?" She asked.

"I'm sure Robs told Regina all about you. They beat us by about ten minutes and that's plenty of time for the man to run his mouth. She'll want to meet you," Killian shrugged, "besides, you'll meet her eventually anyway, now that Dave knows we're here, we'll probably be spending a lot more time together."

"Okay," she said, a little wary as she got out of the car. Did he just say they'd be spending more time together? He meant because they had a mutual friend. There was no way he'd meant anything else by the statement, right? "How long has it been since you've seen David?"

"A little over three years," he said, "he left the navy while we were all in Florida. I'd just gotten married, Rob had just gotten divorced and no one really knows what the hell Jefferson was doing. It hasn't been an eternity, but a lot's changed since then."

"But you guys seemed to pick up right where you left off," she said.

"That's the thing with brothers," he stated, "bonds don't break so easily." Killian didn't knock, instead, opting to send a text. "Don't want to wake the kids," he said.

The door opened and a dark haired woman, who Emma assumed was Regina, let them in. Killian introduced them and Emma did her best to act like she wasn't nervous as hell. Then, she tried to figure out why she was nervous as hell.

Robin and Jefferson were sitting on the couch, with two kids who were definitely not asleep.

"Emma!" Robin grinned, "welcome to the after party! This is Roland," he pointed to a dark haired boy, who was engrossed in whatever cartoon was on tv, "and this is Gracie," he pointed to a blonde girl who was busy trying to get colorful barrettes into Jefferson's short hair. "Where are my manners?" He scolded himself as he gestured towards the woman Emma assumed was Regina, "this lovely lady here, is my wife, Regina." She offered her hand to Regina, who took it, giving a polite, "nice to meet you", nod. Though, Emma got the impression Regina wasn't all that pleased to meet her.

Another kid came running into the room and straight into Killian's arms, "this one, is Adelaide," he said as he lifted her up into a hug, "and she's supposed to be asleep." Emma smiled at the little girl, who looked very much like her daddy. Same intense blue eyes and hair dark as the night. The only differences were the fact that her hair was much longer and she seemed so tiny and delicate, especially compared to him.

"They all are," Regina stated, "but we've had a rough night." She looked at Emma, "I hear you're friends with David."

"Yeah," Emma smiled.

"I've never met him," she admitted, "but I've heard a lot about him."

Emma wasn't sure what to say, and was having a hell of a time reading the woman. She didn't know what Robin had said about her, but she could almost feel the disapproval hanging off the words between them.

"Are you two joining us or not?" Jefferson asked.

"I promised Miss Swan I'd get her home safely," Killian declined, "wouldn't want to incur Dave's wrath."

"Maybe some other time," Emma said.

"You should bring your boy," Killian suggested, "we're barbecuing next weekend, provided the weather stays decent." The days were becoming cooler, but so far, the tell tale signs of autumn were staying away, as if waiting for summer to be officially over on the calendar before they unleashed their fury.

"Okay." Dammit, why couldn't she just stick to noncommittal answers? Robin and Jefferson both agreed she should come to the barbecue with her son. Regina smiled politely, but Emma got the feeling the woman didn't want her there.


	2. Pukey Princess

"She hates me," Emma complained once they were in the car again. She still wasn't sure why she cared.

"Relax," Killian said, "she doesn't hate you. It just takes awhile for her to warm up to people."

"Why did I feel like I was being interrogated?" Regina hadn't said much to her, but even the simplest questions made her feel like she was under attack.

"She was just as cold when she first met me," he tried to convince her, "Robin probably told her we met you at the bar and she's just unsure about you."

"Oh god," Emma gasped, realizing what probably happened, "she thinks I'm some skank you picked up at the bar."

Killian laughed, "right, because I make a habit of bringing home strange women. I always make sure to take them to the babysitter's house too, while I pick up my toddler."

"I'm sorry," she wrinkled her nose, "I didn't mean it like that, really." God, she was batting a thousand today. He was going to drop her off and lose her number for sure.

"Don't worry about it," he was smiling still, so she was relieved he found it amusing, "honestly though, if you weren't Dave's friend, I would have just taken your number and prayed for an answer when I called."

"If you weren't his friend, I wouldn't have taken a ride if you offered. Guess we both lucked out." She was never one to trust a stranger from a bar. "Hey, make a right at this next light."

"I'll consider myself lucky only if you answer the phone when I call you," he grinned, "what's the rule now? Three days?"

"You're asking the wrong person," she laughed, "I wasn't even aware there were rules."

"Daddy?" A little voice sounded from the backseat. It shocked both of them, because the second he had buckled her in, she was out like a light.

"Yes?" Killian looked in the rear view mirror and smiled at the little girl.

"My tummy hurts," she whined.

"I take it you and Roland were sneaking goodies again?"

"No," she frowned, "I was good!"

"We're almost there," he tried to soothe her. He looked at Emma who confirmed her complex was around the next corner, "then we'll head on home."

"But it hurts!" She started crying.

Emma turned around and and looked at Adelaide, "I think she's going to throw up."

"Wonderful," he sighed, picking up speed.

"Here," Emma pointed to the building. After he parked, Emma jumped out, "my apartment's on the bottom floor, come on."

Killian turned the car off and quickly got Adelaide out, following Emma to her apartment. She opened the door for him and pointed him in the direction of the bathroom, letting out a sigh of relief when she realized they'd barely made it.

"Swan?" He called.

"What's wrong?" She asked, making her way back to the bathroom. Adelaide was sitting on the floor, crying and Killian was desperately trying to get her to stop.

"Little miss got some in her hair. I wasn't quick enough." He scowled, "and it looks like she got her shirt too."

Throw up was never fun, but it wasn't lost on her how adorable he was, trying to calm Adelaide down. "Okay," she said, kneeling down so she could get to the cabinet under the sink. Killian watched as she pulled out a towel and washcloth, followed by what looked like children's shampoo and soap. "Princess doesn't mind super hero soap, does she?"

Killian laughed when Emma showed him the bottle, "no, we're rather fond of Iron Man in the Jones household."

"I prefer Hawkeye myself," she commented, "but Iron Man isn't bad."

"I'm sorry," he sighed.

"For what?" She shrugged, "kids get sick. It happens. I'm pretty used to it by now." She set the items on the sink and turned on the bath for him, showing how to fix the temperature. "Old building," she explained, "everything's a little backwards for some reason."

"Thank you," he said.

"No problem," she smiled, "just put her dirty clothes on top of the hamper and I can get them washed up tonight. I have some pajamas of Henry's she can borrow, but they'll probably be a little big."

"I think pajama size is the least of our worries," he laughed as he started getting the little girl ready for her bath, "I always keep spare pull-ups in my trunk though," he said, "I dropped my key somewhere between the living room and the bathroom. Would you mind?"

"Not at all," she nodded.

"She just puked," Emma reasoned, "one, you don't even know if she'll make it home, and two, you cannot let her go to sleep with wet hair."

"Swan," he argued, "it's not that far and it's not wet hair, it's damp."

Adelaide sat on the couch and watched the adults banter. She felt much better, and was nice and cozy in her borrowed captain America pajamas.

"Good thing I own a hair dryer," she rolled her eyes.

"What's that?" Adelaide asked.

Emma looked at Killian in shock. "What? I've never really bothered with one myself." He shrugged, "as for Addy, the poor thing is lucky I've mastered the pony tail."

"Come on," she held her hand out for Adelaide, "wanna play princess?" The little girl nodded and grabbed Emma's hand, getting off the couch to go with her.

Killian raised an eyebrow and followed the girls into Emma's room. He watched as Emma sat her on the bed and told her to wait. She disappeared into her bathroom and came back with rubber bands, a hair dryer and a brush.

"You feeling okay?" She asked. When Adelaide nodded, she smiled, "okay, turn around so I can do your hair."

Emma plugged in her hair dryer and started to comb and dry the little girl's hair. She heard Adelaide giggling when the air hit the back of her neck.

"What do you think?" Emma asked after Adelaide's hair was dry, "should we teach your dad how to braid?" When she nodded, Emma looked at Killian, "pay attention."

He watched, and figured braiding hair looked simple enough, but when Emma had him give it a try, he realized he was hopelessly lost. When both Emma and Adelaide laughed at him, he grinned sheepishly, "it's a bit more complicated than it looks."

"Wait until you learn the French braid," Emma commented as she took over and finished Adelaide's hair. "There," she said, "so if you get sick again, it's out of your way."

"Thank you," Adelaide turned around and smiled At Emma.

"No problem," Emma smiled back, "how about we get some rest now?" She picked up Adelaide and took her to another room. "You can use Henry's bed tonight. Do you like ninja turtles?" Emma set her on the bed and started fumbling around underneath the bed until a second bunk popped out. "There," She said, "now daddy can keep an eye on you."

"I want 'Vengers," Adelaide said, scooting onto the pullout bed, which had a set of avengers sheets on it.

"It's been a long time since I used cartoon character sheets," Killian remarked, eyeing the ninja turtles that would be accompanying him in dreamland.

"Well, there's a couch too, but I thought you might want to stay close. The beds are actually a better option anyway," she frowned, realizing he hadn't actually said they'd stay, "I mean, if you wanted to stay. At least let her catch a nap and see how she's doing before you take her on the road."

"You're probably right," he said, "she may feel better now, but it's probably best to make sure she's okay before I risk her redecorating the upholstery. It may be a ten minute trip, but we barely made it here."

"Okay," she nodded, "I'll be in the living room for a little longer if you need anything."

"Where are you going?" Adelaide asked when Emma turned to leave.

"I have some work to catch up on," she answered. She'd been distracted long enough. Now that Adelaide was feeling better and ready to get to sleep, it was time to dive back into her case.


	3. Sweet Distractions

**A/N: Sorry. I have all the chapters uploaded, but I've been a little busy with work and school. This work is actually complete on Archive of our Own under the same name. I am Reluctant Princess on that site as well. **

Emma impatiently waited as her laptop whirred to life. After logging in, she dove head first into her notes and files from the case.

As far as she'd been told, local law enforcement had stepped up their patrol around the local hangouts and the military police had tightened security on base.

Not that she thought any of this would help.

The crime scenes seemed random, the victims seemed random, aside from the fact that they were all sailors, and there seemed to be no motive whatsoever. Each victim had a clean record and no evidence of any kind of trouble in their personal or professional lives.

What the hell was this guy's game?

"She's asleep," Killian said as he came back into the living room.

"It looked like she was feeling a little better," Emma smiled.

"Thank you," he said, sitting on the couch, "she went on and on about how I need to buy a hair dryer and learn how to braid."

Emma laughed, "Smart kid."

"What are you working on?" He asked.

"A case," she said as she closed out some of the more sensitive files, "have you seen the news lately?" When he shook his head, she sighed, "it's pretty bad. Three identical murders in three weeks. No leads. I'm just trying to find something I missed."

"You don't mean those guys that were poisoned, do you?" He asked. When she nodded, he frowned, "Rumors have been flying on post. Rob, Hat and I have been pulling extra patrol shifts to keep a lookout for anything suspicious, but whoever this guy is, he's good at blending in."

"That's why I need to find this guy," she stated, "because I don't want to be finding another body come Monday." It was the worst part about this whole case, knowing that someone had lost a beloved family member because she had failed, yet again. She was getting pretty sick of failing.

Killian leaned forward and shut the computer. She protested, but he unplugged it and pulled it away from her, "you're just like Dave," he said, "a workaholic. And I bet you've got every detail of this case committed to memory."

"I think I'm worse than David," she admitted, "he keeps telling me to relax."

"That's a bad sign, Swan," He sighed, "he's high strung and I've never seen anyone wound tighter than that man. So if he's telling you to relax, you've got problems."

Emma frowned, knowing he was absolutely right. But then, she'd always taken work way too seriously, even when she was just working patrol in the city. This was different though. She couldn't afford to relax when there was a killer out there, days away from his next victim. Still, she had every detail of the case memorized and combing it over again wasn't going to give her any new answers. It never did.

"Tell me about Henry," Killian changed the subject, "how old is he?"

"Five," she said, trying to follow his train of thought, but still worrying about the case, "he's with his dad until Monday."

"The same fool you told me about earlier?" He asked.

"If you really knew me, you'd probably take his side," she laughed, "but yes, same guy." In all honesty, she didn't want to have anything to do with her ex, he'd burned her bad. When she found out she was pregnant, she did her best to keep it from him, but word travels around in a military town and he found out. Strangely enough, he wanted to be a part of Henry's life, even though it was pretty off and on at times.

"Why do you say that?" He quirked an eyebrow and she just tried to shake off the comment.

How did you explain to someone you just met that you were completely unlovable? At least, that was what Neal had finally told her. Some part of her always knew it too, seeing as she spent her entire life bouncing from foster home to foster home, never being the kid someone wanted to bring in as a permanent part of their family. She spent most of her life trying to find her birth parents, to see where she came from. To find out why she was so broken and unwanted. But, like her almost serial killer, they had managed to elude her, leaving no trace of their existence.

Finding people was what she was good at, yet, she couldn't find the two people who had started her searching in the first place.

"Emma?" He asked, and she realized she'd drifted off into her own little world.

"Complicated," she finally said. Now was not the time for a meltdown. "Look," she stood up, "you're right, I need to relax. Remote's on the entertainment stand if you want to watch TV. I need some sleep." No, she needed to figure out why this guy was getting to her and she needed to put some space between them before she did something stupid.

"Okay," he stood up too, "goodnight."

"If she feels better tomorrow, I can make some pancakes or something," she said, trying to make her escape while she could still breathe. Her phone picked that moment to chime, making her jump.

"Is that Dave again?" He asked, "You should tell him I'm staying the night. That'll be good for a laugh."

Emma rolled her eyes and smiled as she checked her phone, "the man's wife is in labor and you want to make him have a heart attack worrying about me?" She read the message, "I lied."

"About?"

"She's not in labor," Emma grinned, "it's a boy."

"Pics or it didn't happen," he said. When she started to text, his eyes got wide, "you aren't really telling him that!"

"It's okay," she giggled, "I told him you said it."

"Swan!" He meant to sound mad, but the fact that he was laughing killed that act. He made a grab for the phone and she pulled it back. "You can't tell him that!"

"Already did," she teased.

"Give me that," he growled, making another grab for the phone, catching her wrist in the process.

"Watch it buddy," she warned, trying to pull out of his grasp, "I can kick your ass if I have to."

"You seem to forget," he pulled her closer, "I'm a cop too, I know all the same moves. Maybe more, seeing as I have that good old fashioned military training."

Dear god, he was too close now. Emma could practically feel her heart trying to jump out, and just prayed that he couldn't tell she'd suddenly shifted from bold and brave to scared as hell.

It didn't seem like he took any notice as he pried the phone from her with his other hand, smirking in victory. Once he had what he needed, he let go of her and started in on the conversation. "Asshole," she muttered under her breath.

_Tell Killian to suck it!_ David replied. _Wait, I thought he was just dropping you off?_

**_Change in plans, mate. _**Killian texted back.

"Give it back!" Emma made a grab, but Killian wasn't about to let her get the phone back.

_What?! Hell no! Killian Jones, you get your ass out of there. NOW_

**_The lady insists I stay..._** He looked up at Emma, "I do believe our friend is going to have an aneurysm if he doesn't calm down."

"What?" She frowned, "what are you telling him? Give me that phone!"

_I'm warning you..._

**_Are you sending pics or not? We'll likely swing by tomorrow, but we want pics now!_**

"Can you just please tell him the truth so he doesn't think I'm going around sleeping with his friends?" Emma groaned.

"Relax, Swan," Killian said, and Emma wanted to smack the damn smirk off his face. "I won't let him think that. Though I told him we'd be by tomorrow to see the kid."

"You said 'we'?" Great. Now David was going to interrogate her.

"Why not?" He shrugged, "we can stop by my place, Addy and I can get changed and the hospital is right around the corner from my house."

"If she's still sick-"

"Then you'll go without us," he said, "oh look! Dave sent pictures! And a death threat..." He handed the phone back to Emma when he heard Adelaide start coughing in Henry's room. She looked at the phone and smiled as she read the text.

_They will not find your body._

**_Relax_**** ,** Emma typed. **_His kid got sick, so I didn't want her on the road. They're in Henry's room._**

_He's got a kid? Since when?_

**_Really? You men need to learn how to communicate better. Enjoy your kiddo. Talk to you tomorrow. ;)_**

"She's okay," Killian came back into the room, "has Dave calmed any?"

Emma looked up at him, confused, "He didn't even know you had a kid," she said, "are you guys _that _afraid of actual conversations?" Wasn't that the type of thing brothers told one another?

"People lose touch," he shrugged, "had a couple deployments, I don't do Facebook, and I definitely don't write home to mommy. The military life is a part of a very small world. I knew one day, we'd all run into each other again and pick up right where we left off."

"But you're brothers!" She insisted, "And he got out of the military."

"He moved to Norfolk," Killian reminded her. "Why do you think when the time came, we all put in to transfer here?"

"Did something happen?" She asked, "Besides David leaving. It's just weird that he'd not know the important stuff." She was pushing, she knew it. The guys acted as if there was no bad blood between them, like they'd just seen each other the day before. If they had parted on bad terms, wouldn't it be more obvious?

"I dropped off the face of the earth for a bit," he admitted, "I mean, I was still there, but I kept to myself after..." He frowned, not really wanting to talk about his darker moments. "I just stayed in my own world for a while. Me and Addy."

"Oh." He didn't have to say it, she could tell by the way he talked about shutting down that he lost touch because he shut everyone out. Because he lost his wife. Knowing David, he probably would have been on the first plane to see his brother, but Emma figured from Killian's tone, that he liked to wallow alone.

"She was an infant," he said, "so, I've been doing this alone for almost three years. I mean, I've had help. Regina's always been a big help when it came to deployments and childcare, but the whole bar thing? Let's just say other than for work purposes, I haven't bothered with finding a babysitter in a long time."

"Yeah," she nodded, "I get that. I mean, I know I'm not completely on my own, but up until I started working with David, I never went out. Just didn't seem worth it at the time. I was too busy trying to make things good for Henry."

"I used to be a real hell raiser," he said, "until I started getting invites to tea parties with stuffed animals."

"Oh," she laughed, "I bet you're still a hellion when you want to be."

"What about you?" He asked, shifting a little closer to her, "I'd wager that you gave your parents a run for their money."

"They sure ran for something," she backed away and sat down on the couch.

Killian walked over and sat next to her, not sure what nerve he hit, but he knew he hit something. "I didn't mean anything by it." He made sure to face her, to keep her looking at him.

"I'm sure they didn't either." _Dammit Emma_ , she lectured herself, as the familiar lump started forming in her throat. _Don't you dare start crying_.

The two people who should have loved and wanted her more than anything couldn't even be bothered to leave her some way to find them later in life.

"Swan?"

She looked up at him and noticed he was obviously afraid he upset her. She didn't want to say anything, afraid that her voice would crack and then, she'd lose control of the tears she was fighting back. So instead, she offered him a weak smile, hoping it was enough.

It didn't matter how long it had been. Her parent's rejection still stung like a fresh wound. When Henry was born, she swore she'd never let him know that pain. For the most part, it had worked out. He knew how loved and wanted he was. Neal on the other hand, wasn't quite "father of the year" material. He could be, there was no denying how much he loved his son, but there was still a part of him that was too selfish to put a child's needs above his own.

"Whatever I said," he spoke again, "I really didn't mean any harm."

Fuck. He was too nice for his own good and right now, at this moment, he looked as if he wasn't sure whether to give her space or try and kiss her. At the moment, she wasn't even sure what she wanted him to do.

_Dammit Emma! _How the hell did she screw this up? Why couldn't she have just taken him to bed so he could think she was that kind of girl? Then, he'd be on his merry way, looking for the next conquest. Now here he was, fucking comforting her. She'd known him what, a couple hours? How did he manage to get her talking to him about things she usually kept locked away? How in the hell had he and his friends already fucking inserted her into their crazy little life, inviting her to fucking barbecues and shit?

Why did he have to be David's friend? Why did she listen to David when he told her to be nice? Why did he have to be good looking, fun _and_ sweet? Why couldn't he just be a dick?

"Fuck!" She shouted.

"I'm sorry?" He asked.

"Did I say that out loud?" Emma felt her cheeks getting hot and she knew she was turning red. What the hell was he doing to her?

"Yeah," he chuckled, "you kind of did."

"Sorry," she whispered, thoroughly embarrassed. She shut her eyes, not wanting to look at him. Knowing that if she did, she might come completely undone, and not in a good way. In a stupid, sobbing mess kind of way. What the fuck was he going to do? Give her some breathing room or fucking kiss her already? She debated going back to her original plan and escaping to bed. After all, she did tell him she needed her sleep. But she was frozen in place, unsure of what the hell she should do. Her eyes shot open the second she felt his lips on hers and her breath hitched, causing him to pull back. "Sorry," he mumbled, "I didn't know what to do, so I thought that might be a good option. If I overstepped-"

Killian didn't get a chance to finish his sentence, because she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him right back to her. Slowly, the confusion drained from him and she felt him tangle his fingers in her hair and slip an arm around her waist.

Emma let go of his collar and wrapped her arms around his neck. She felt him hold her tighter, pull her closer, as if he couldn't get enough of her.

For someone who complained he didn't get out much, the man could kiss.

"Daddy?" Emma felt him let go of her, the action reluctant. He pulled away, and looked at her for a second, as if he was trying to read her mind.

"Yes?" He stood up and slowly turned towards Adelaide's voice, noticing that she wasn't there, but still in Henry's room.

Thank god for small miracles.

"Daddy!" The sense of urgency in the second call seemed to snap him out of whatever trance he was in. Princess needed to puke.

Emma watched him run out of the room to tend to his sickie. She looked at the clock and saw it was well after midnight. Figuring that she couldn't make any more stupid mistakes if she was sleeping, she got up and went to her own room and collapsed on the bed. She could figure all this out tomorrow.


	4. Second Dates and Babysitting

Emma woke up when the sun became too strong for her curtains to block it. She had lost count of how many times Adelaide had made a dash for the bathroom, but she had a feeling there would be no baby visits this morning.

Around three, she remembered having a spare toothbrush, realizing the poor kid was probably not having much fun trying to rinse her mouth out with water.

Then around four or five, she heard the bath running again.

Looking at the clock, she saw it was a little after seven.

If this counted as a first date, it was a complete disaster. Emma snorted at the thought of putting a number on it at all. She wasn't the kind of girl who got second dates anyway. No matter how genuine Killian Jones seemed, he would leave eventually. They all did.

Her door was open, but he knocked anyway. "Swan?"

Emma sat up and gave him a sympathetic look, "not doing much better?"

"Not really," he said, "she's got a fever now."

"Boy, she doesn't half ass it, does she?" she joked. He laughed at that, but she could see how tired he was. The poor guy looked as if he hadn't slept a wink all night. "I've got some children's Tylenol," she said, climbing out of bed.

"You're a life saver," he grinned, "Thank you."

When it came to sick kids, Emma couldn't help but feel helpless. Even with all the various ways to comfort them, they were still completely miserable and it was heartbreaking. She grabbed the Tylenol from her bathroom medicine cabinet and went in to see Adelaide.

"Hey," she said softly, as she sat down on the edge of the bed, brushing some hair wisps out of the little girl's face. Killian wasn't kidding about the fever. Adelaide just whimpered. "I have some medicine," Emma said, "It'll make you feel a little better."

"My head hurts." She complained, "And my tummy."

"Do you need to throw up again?" Killian asked. Adelaide shook her head and he sat down and pulled her into his lap, "okay then," he said softly, "Miss Emma has some..." He looked at the bottle, "grape stuff. It'll make your head feel much better."

"How old is she?" Emma asked.

"Three next month," he answered.

"Okay," Emma read the label and measured out the medicine into the little cup.

After Adelaide took it, she made a face, "that's not grape."

"Grape flavored stuff never really tastes like grapes," Killian explained as he put her back down and tucked her in, "now why don't you take a little nap and we'll see about getting home soon."

"Kay." Adelaide shut her eyes and that was that.

Emma and Killian left and went back into the living room so she could get her rest. "She didn't sleep much at all," he said.

"I heard," Emma replied, "poor kid."

"I'm really sorry," he apologized, for what she felt was about the millionth time, "does this mean I have no chance at all for a second date?"

Emma couldn't help it, she just burst out laughing, "That really counted?"

He laughed too, "I guess. I mean, I bought you a drink and there was some banter at the bar, I drove you home, we shared conversation, I kissed you goodnight..." He smirked, "then my kid proceeded to worship the porcelain god all night long."

"Would it be sad if I told you I've actually had worse dates?" She was teasing him, of course. But in all honesty? It was the truth.

"Not sure what could be much worse than having a child you've known for less than an hour puke her guts out in your home," he shrugged, "but I'll take your word for it."

"You know," she said, "we're probably going to get whatever bug she's got."

"Guess we should tell Dave not to expect us," he sighed, "look, I don't want to be any more of a bother, I can take Addy home-"

"Let her sleep," she said, "It's no bother."

"So about that second date?" He asked.

"You never called," she stated, "I think it's customary for you to call afterwards to let me know you're interested, right?"

"Really?" He grinned, "You're going to make me do that?"

"I don't have your number," she shot back, "I gave you mine, but you never returned the favor." He was getting flustered, and as much as she thought she should stop being such a pain, it was kind of amusing to watch.

"Fine," he took out his phone and picked her name from his contacts, catching her off guard. He was going to call her _now_? When her phone rang, he looked at her, "you gonna get that?"

_Okay_ , she thought, _so he wants to play._ Emma took her phone out and frowned, "I don't know this number...it's a weird area code..." She smirked at him, "maybe it's that guy from the bar, I wonder if I want to talk to him..."

"Really?" He groaned.

God, was she fucking flirting again? "Hello?" She said as she answered the call.

"I called," he said, "Do I get a second date?"

"I'm sorry?" She feigned ignorance, "but who is this?"

"Are you kidding me?" He made a face at her, "It's Killian, from the bar. You know, the man standing right in front of you?"

"Oh!" She pretended to recognize him, "the British guy?"

"American," he reminded her.

"Yeah," she smiled, and for the love of all that was holy, did she just twirl her hair? "You get a second date."

Lord Jesus, did she just agree to see him again?

"Thank you," he rolled his eyes, but the annoyance was all faked, she could tell by the huge grin on his face. They both hung up and immediately, Killian's phone rang again. "Jones," he said and excused himself, going back into the hallway. Emma sat on the couch, giving him as much space as she could in her tiny apartment. He came back, looking irritated. "I need to go in," he said.

"Everything okay?" She asked, checking her own phone. No missed calls, meaning it probably had nothing to do with her case. Yet, at least.

"It'll be fine, just let me call Regina and I'll get her all packed up," he said.

"Killian," she protested, "that kid is sick as hell. Just leave her here."

"I _just_ got a second date," he said, "and now I'm asking you to babysit? That's bad form, Swan."

"I'm serious," she said, "don't move her if you don't have to. I mean, I get you hardly know me-"

"It isn't that," he shook his head, "it just feels wrong to ask you."

"So don't ask," she shrugged, "I offered. If you're comfortable leaving her here and she's comfortable staying, I'm more than willing to keep an eye on her."

"Really?"

"Really."

He disappeared into Henry's room for a few minutes and he returned to the living room without Adelaide, "She said she wants to stay," he said, "you really don't mind?"

"I really don't," she said again, "look, David and I have this thing where we have each other's backs, no matter what. He and Mary Margaret have helped me with Henry more times than I can even count and I know I'm going to be helping him with his kid if he ever needs it. You're his friend, so by extension, it counts. I'll keep an eye on her while you go in."

"Thank you," he said, "I certainly hope this doesn't count as date two though."

"I think this is still technically one," she laughed.

_Was he really serious about keeping count?_


	5. Monday

Emma and David are joined by Ruby (the resident gossip) to check on their latest victim, who happened to survive. Ruby annoys Emma by asking about the mystery man she spied her with over the weekend and David is insisting he doesn't want to know.

Chapter Notes

This chapter wound up being almost 4000 words, so I had to split it into two. We'll meet our victim shortly!

"What the hell are you doing here?" Emma asked. David had just walked in and dropped his backpack on his desk, ready to start the day. "Your wife just had a baby."

"She's fine," he assured her, "I can't leave you hanging on this case, Emma. I know you haven't put it down since it started."

"That's sweet, but your wife just had a baby," Emma crossed her arms, trying her best to show her disapproval, though, she couldn't help but be grateful.

"We talked about it," he said, "I'm going to join her in a couple weeks. She knows I'm in the middle of this case and that it's important. Friday night traditions need to take a backseat though."

"It's not as fun without Mary Margaret anyway," she teased, "no offense, but she wouldn't be trying to set me up with her friends."

"Hey, I was not trying to set you up," he protested, "I haven't seen those guys in forever. I talk to Rob on Facebook sometimes, but that's about it, seeing as he's the only one who lives in the twenty first century. They're good guys though."

"They refused to let me leave their sight after you left," she laughed, "like I was suddenly unable to take care of myself."

David shrugged, "you're my friend. It's always been like that for us. We all kept an eye out for each other, especially when it came to family. When one of us asks you to make sure their sister gets home in one piece, you take that job seriously. I guess if you're Killian though, you take it _too_ seriously." He rolled his eyes, apparently still irritated by the text messages he'd received.

"I told you not to listen to him," Emma laughed, "he was joking. His kid got sick and that was that." _Sort of_, she added silently. She felt that it would be best to leave out the fact that Killian had kissed her. Twice. As far as dates went, their second was technically less disastrous, not to mention less vomity, than the first. Adelaide was perfectly content to snooze on the couch, completely unfazed by the smell of the pizza. Emma had told Killian that was a good sign, seeing as she'd barely been able to stomach soup and ginger ale just a few hours prior. Then, they'd gone out to the little patio area outside and just talked. It was mostly nonsense, but it was also nice. They didn't discuss anything serious really, much to Emma's relief, but she could tell that she was already in way too deep. He'd kissed her again, though not like he had that first night. It was softer, sweeter, and because of the risk of a toddler catching them, shorter. Yet, she still got lost in it. No one had ever kissed her like that before. Like they meant it. She liked the guy, and if he kept on, she could see herself falling for him.

That was a problem.

"Earth to Emma," David snapped his fingers, "I asked if his kid was okay."

"Oh," she blinked, wondering how long she'd been lost in Emma land, "yeah. She's fine. He sent me a message yesterday saying she was back to her usually, bubbly self." What she didn't tell him was that she'd also spent a good part of her Sunday hanging out with Killian and Adelaide. It was a little easier to keep from doing anything stupid when they had a completely healthy, fully aware mini chaperone with them. The kid demanded attention too, curious about her dad's new friend. Killian had tried to stop the precocious toddler from bombarding Emma with questions, but he wasn't entirely successful. She looked back up at David and saw he looked a bit upset, "what's wrong?"

"I wish he would have called or something," David said, "he just kind of disappeared one day. Robin said he switched shifts and kind of lost himself for a while. No one could get in contact. On the off chance they saw him, they said he never really said much."

"They didn't tell you why?" She asked.

"They said his wife was sick," he answered, "but when it all came down to it, he kept to himself and didn't clue anyone in. I hardly knew Milah. They had been dating off and on while we were in Florida, but by the time they got serious and got married, I was on my way out."

"Then you followed Mary Margaret and somehow got her to agree to marry you," she said.

"I didn't follow her!" He exclaimed, "She told me to come see her after I got out. The rest, as they say, is history."

"Such a sweet love story," she made a face, then smiled, "you two can be pretty disgusting sometimes. You know that, right?"

"Proud of it," he boasted, "so, since I'm here and you're stuck with me, why don't you tell me what you found out."

"I was off, just like you," she reminded him.

"I know you Emma," he grinned, "you worked all weekend."

"I actually didn't," she informed him, "for once. I was a little busy." Before he could comment about killing one of his best friends again, she continued, "Killian got called in and I kept an eye on Adelaide. When she isn't sleeping, she's quite a handful. Even for a sickie."

"Really?"

"Let's just say, when she isn't sleeping, she doesn't stop talking. She's like two going on twenty," she laughed, "so, no, I wasn't able to comb anything over, we didn't get called in early either, which means no one's found the latest victim yet."

"Optimism," David told her, "maybe he didn't kill anyone last night."

"Right," she couldn't bring herself to be that optimistic. There was no way the guy would just decide to take a week off.

"Nolan!" Ruby Lucas came running into the office, "we've got something big! Oh, hey Swan!" She smiled at Emma, "you're here!"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Emma asked, completely confused. She wasn't late, in fact, she'd actually been early, so Ruby's observation made no sense.

"I just thought you might be staying in," Ruby stated, "I mean, if I had a date that looked like _that_, I'd definitely call in sick the next day."

"You had a date?" David asked.

"No," she said, "but maybe Lucas can explain on the way to our murder scene."

"We're going to the hospital," Ruby grinned, "seems our killer screwed up."

Even with the turn of events and the dire need for Ruby to bring Emma and David up to speed, the brunette grilled Emma about the man she saw her with at the movies.

"You went out with Killian again?" David asked, realizing exactly who Ruby was talking about.

"_Again_?" Ruby's eyes got big, "details!"

Emma groaned, not really wanting to get into it, "case please?"

"Indulge her," David said, "you know she won't drop it." Before she could say anything though, he added, "But we don't want _too _many details. Really."

"It was nothing," Emma said, "I babysat his sick kid on Saturday, so Sunday, he texted me to tell me she was okay and then asked if I wanted to join them to go see The Wizard of Oz. You _did _notice the little girl with us? I think that makes it _not _a date." _Unless you find flying monkeys romantic…_

"Did he kiss you?" Ruby asked.

"We don't want to know." David was adamant she not give details.

"Ruby!"

"You didn't deny it!"

"This is me," Emma said, "Denying it. He didn't kiss me." It wasn't a complete lie, he _didn't _kiss her on Sunday. "It _wasn't _a date."

"You're no fun," Ruby pouted.

It became awkwardly silent for a few minutes until Ruby finally got over herself and started going over what she knew. It wasn't much, a sailor by the name of Graham Humbert had survived an attack. He was in the hospital, and from what she'd been told, he was expected to recover.

Emma didn't want to get her hopes up prematurely. There was always a chance things could take a turn for the worse. Still, the fact that he was expected to recover put her a little at ease and she mostly worried about whether or not he'd remember anything.

Emma hated hospitals. There was something about them that always seemed to make her stomach turn.

When the officer brought them to the victim's room, Emma almost froze. The last person she expected to see was Killian, but there he was, outside the room, talking to someone who looked like a doctor.

Ruby grabbed her arm, "oh. My. God," she whispered, "Your hot, _not _date!"

"Shut up," Emma scolded.

Killian looked up when the doctor walked away, "NCIS? Already? Humbert's still out, but they said he was lucky and he'd be just fine."

"They stuck you on guard duty?" David teased, "Pissing people off already?"

"He's one of my guys," Killian explained.

"They went after a cop?" Emma frowned. This was bad news. Obviously, this killer wasn't afraid of the law, but the fact that he'd go after an actual officer made things just _that _more unnerving.

"Unfortunately, there isn't much information to be had right now," Killian sighed, "I mean, I can tell you what I know, but it isn't much." He went over the only details he had, the bar Humbert had been at and where he'd been found the next morning.

"He went to drink alone?" David asked.

"Graham's a bit of a loner," Killian said, "but he knows better than this. Especially when there's someone out there targeting sailors."

"Maybe when he wakes up, he'll remember something," Emma said, hoping that turned out to be true. They could use some good leads.

Ruby, who had been quiet this whole time, finally spoke up, "so how do you know Emma?"

God dammit.

"Excuse me?" Killian asked.

"Ignore her," Emma said as she shot Ruby a death glare, "she was just leaving." She loved Ruby, but the girl was always focusing on the wrong thing.

"We came in the same car," Ruby reminded her.

"Do I need to remind you you're already on thin ice?" She was not having this. Not now. Not today. Not ever. Ruby's love of gossip was bad enough when Emma wasn't the subject.

"Why don't Lucas and I check out the bar?" David suggested, "You can stay here and talk to this guy when he wakes up."

It was a decent plan, David would take Ruby so she couldn't continue her line of questioning and she'd be stuck with David, who was not a good source of gossip. That left Emma with the task of damage control, but thankfully, Ruby had been silenced before she could say anything really stupid. Once the two were gone, she sighed in relief. "Sorry," she apologized, "she's our resident gossip. Don't let the bubbly attitude fool you though, she's damn good at what she does and has helped track down and apprehend countless dirt bags."

Killian nodded, a smirk on his face, "so how did you become the latest gossip? Talking about me already?"

"Don't get all smug buddy," she rolled her eyes, "she saw us at the theater yesterday. Now can you stop acting like her and give me some information on your guy? Any personal or financial issues that you know of? Enemies? Love triangles?"

"As I said, he's a bit of a loner," Killian told her, "I haven't been here long enough to really know him, but he's not a trouble maker. Decent fellow, and liked by his peers. Outstanding service record and up for a promotion. As far as finances, we've never had any complaints from creditors, he seems the responsible type. No significant other that I'm aware of. He's not married, but he could be seeing someone...or not...he doesn't really talk about anything."

"Hmm," Emma wasn't exactly pleased with the lack of information.

"We have a security detail on their way," Killian said, "I've got two guys one him at all times. No one goes in there that doesn't belong there."

"That's good," she nodded, "it would be better if he would wake up, because you aren't exactly a wealth of information here."

"Sorry, love," Killian shrugged, "perhaps it would help if he were a little more interesting?" She raised an eyebrow and he sighed, "I didn't mean it like that. I just meant that people who lead messier lives leave better trails."

"That's the problem!" She exclaimed, her frustration boiling over, "all our victims are so clean cut it's unreal. I was hoping that with a survivor we might get something, but it looks like we're just as lost as we were before."

"Maybe he saw something," he suggested, "between our guys and your guys combing that crime scene, we're bound to find some shred of evidence. He'll wake soon, Swan. The doctor said he would, and he'll likely have something to give you. You'll get your man."

She desperately hoped he was right about that. Emma Swan was getting really tired of being on the losing side of things.


	6. Questions and Surprises

The door to Humbert's room opened, and a nurse stepped out, informing them that he'd just started to wake up. Emma gave another quick, silent prayer for answers as she made her way into the room. She gave her victim a once over as she pulled a chair over to his bedside. He looked over at her and it was obvious he was still groggy and trying to focus. "Take your time," Emma said, "we're in no rush." She waited patiently, knowing that rushing him would only result in him either being overwhelmed or shutting down completely.

"You're not military," the man finally said. Good lord, did everyone on this base have an accent?

"No," she said, "NCIS. Special agent Swan." She waited for him to process the information, noticing the panic set in. "You're not in any trouble, Humbert." That didn't seem to calm him any. "Just relax, I'm here to help you."

"Do you know what happened to me?" He continued looking around the room, "how did I end up here?"

"I was hoping you could help me put that together, Humbert."

"Please call me Graham," he said.

Well, if it would put him at ease, why not? "Okay Graham. Call me Emma then." He gave her a weak smile. "Can you tell me what you remember from last night?" He was quiet, as if he was trying to recall his night. As she waited, she went through her notes, going over what she knew. David and Ruby were already working the bar angle, checking the place out and getting in touch with the bartender that found him. What she needed to know was what Graham remembered.

"I don't know," he finally said. "The last thing I remember was wanting to get away from the barracks. There was a game I wanted to catch, so I headed down to this little sports bar off post. I had maybe two or three beers? I was supposed to work today, so I didn't think it would be wise to get hammered."

"That was probably a good call," she smiled at him, hoping that a little small talk would keep him going. "Do you remember anything else? I was told you went alone, but was there anyone there that you knew? Any details you can come up with are helpful."

"I did go alone," he confirmed, "but I'm also a regular there, so it isn't as if I sit in a corner all night. I know the bartender, Pete, pretty well. He's a good guy. Figured in a place like that, I wouldn't be much of a target." Graham shut his eyes for a moment, as if he was trying to visualize the bar that night. "Like I said, there was a game. I remember wanting to catch it, that it was important, but for the life of me, I can't even remember who was playing."

"Don't strain," she warned, "if you can't remember, it's okay. It could come back to you later. Is there anything you _do _remember?" The fact that he was fuzzy on a game he felt was important was _not _a good sign.

Graham shook his head and frowned, "I'm sorry…that's really all I've got at the moment."

"Do you remember anything _before _you went to the bar?" She asked, "Besides wanting to go to the bar, of course."

"It was a quiet day," he said, "I was bored and wanted to get out."

"No arguments? Roommate disputes?"

He laughed at that, "I keep to myself. I've probably argued with five people in my entire life. My roommate's been on leave for the past week as well, so it's downright impossible to get into with him at the moment. Not that we do. He's an even tempered guy."

"Lover troubles?" Emma was really fishing here. This guy seemed to have no enemies at all. Still, they'd have to check everyone. Co-workers, friends, enemies, lovers, exes…whatever. _Someone _had to know something that could give them a lead.

"Broke up a few months ago," he said, "she moved to California."

The likelihood of the girl having mob connections was slim to none. Besides, this wasn't a mob hit.

"Thank you, Graham," She said, standing up and pushing the chair away. She wasn't going to get anywhere with this. "If you remember anything-"

"I'll call," he assured her as he watched her place her card on the table by his bed.

"Get some rest," Emma said as she left the room.

"Did Dave get in touch with you?" Killian asked when she met him in the hall. Two officers were quick to move in front of the door after it had been closed. Security detail, she figured. That was quick.

"No," she answered, "Why?"

"They're on their way back," he stated, "said they got what they could from the bar and that there's a team out there looking for evidence. Learn anything from Humbert?"

"Nope." She didn't want to talk about it, because it was frustrating enough. The only saving grace was that Graham was completely foggy and that he'd likely remember something when he was feeling better. The frustrating part was that for now, she had nothing to go on and she had no idea _when _the guy would get to feeling better.

"Emma!" Ruby bounded up to her. The brunette was always bubbly, even in the worst of situations, so her amusement was never a good indicator of anything. David's grin however, _that _was something that caught her attention.

"Please tell me you have good news," she begged.

"We need to get back to the office," David said, his smile never fading, "we might have something."

Emma let out a sigh of relief. The promise of _maybe _something was so much better than nothing. Ruby grabbed her by the arm and practically dragged her towards the exit.

"I'll call you later then, Swan?" Killian called after them.

"Say yes," Ruby hissed in her ear.

"Uh…sure…" Emma called back, elbowing Ruby in the side.

Ruby and Emma sat behind the two-way mirror and watched as David went over the previous night's events with Pete, the bartender Graham had talked about.

Pete was a big guy, and seemed every bit the good man Graham said he was. The man seemed genuinely upset that something had happened to one of his best customers and nervous that someone so heinous had slipped by him without notice.

"He used to come in with this girl," Pete stated, "But they broke up a few months ago. Haven't seen her since. He said she got stationed out in California."

David nodded, recalling the information Emma had given him on the girlfriend. "Did he talk to anyone last night? Besides you?"

"This guy and his girl," Pete said, "I don't really know them, but they've been coming in quite a bit over the past few Sunday's. He seems to know them pretty well."

Emma took out her phone and typed up the information in her notepad. That could be something to ask Graham about later.

"Did they argue?"

"Nah," Pete laughed, "Graham never gets into bar fights. They shared a few laughs and drinks, then the guy and his gal left for the night."

"Got a name?" David asked.

"He paid, so I didn't catch her name," Pete answered, "but his was different. Jefferson…something."

Emma's mouth dropped. There was no way it wasn't who she thought it was, and by the way David looked over in the mirror, she knew he knew it too. She looked at her phone, ready to tell Killian to haul Jefferson's butt down there, only to see that he'd already texted her.

_Swan…Jefferson's here…said he needed to talk to you?_

With a quick flick, Emma turned the microphone on, "Nolan? A moment?"

Maybe it was nothing, maybe Jefferson was just on a date with this mystery woman. Either way, now he was at the hospital, trying to get in touch with her. She went out into the hall and met David, showing him the text.

"That puts him on our list, Emma," David said quietly, "I mean…if he's at this bar every Sunday, it's a pretty good alibi seeing as the last three victims were found at various other locations, but it still puts him on the list of people to look into. He's the last person, other than Pete, that we _know _talked to Humbert."

"What about the girl?" Emma asked, "Any clue on who she might be?"

"I haven't seen these guys in _years_," David reminded her, "I know he's divorced, but who he's seeing? I haven't the foggiest."

They couldn't question Jefferson, their friendship being a conflict of interest. Ruby was still too new at all of this to be trusted with such an important interrogation. _It's not an interrogation, _Emma had to remind herself, _he didn't do anything wrong._

Of all the people he could have asked, David brought in Special Agent Lance Elliot. Or as his fan girls liked to call him, Lancelot. (If you were Ruby, it was Lance-hot). "Nothing personal, Emma," David had promised her, "He's just good at what he does."

David was right, Lance was damn good at his job and could get a confession out of anyone.

However, after their failed…_whatever…_last summer, Emma wasn't quite ready to see him again. He had actually transferred for a temporary duty assignment, only to return again at the beginning of the year. So far, she'd managed to avoid any run-ins, relieved that the guy didn't seem to want to give it another go. It wasn't his fault, really. He couldn't help that the girls all fawned over him like he was some sort of Greek god. The problem was, he seemed to eat it up instead of ignore it.

She tried to ignore it, because he was a nice guy, he really was, but there were so many other things between them that didn't work. He didn't like that she was married to her job (even though he was pretty married to his too), she didn't like that he was such a damn flirt. He wanted a relationship (though he was pretty bad at keeping his eyes from wandering) and she was in no hurry to label anything. Besides, she was enjoying the fact that even though his eyes wandered, nothing else ever did, even with her refusal to take things to the next level.

It finally ended after about three months when he asked why he hadn't met Henry yet. That was the straw that broke the camel's back. No one met Henry. Ever. Because no one stuck around for the long haul, and while it was fine for them to break _her _heart, _no one _was allowed to hurt her son.

Dammit, she had to come up with some excuse to get out of the barbecue on Saturday. She couldn't bring Henry around the guys, around Killian. He'd love them all, _especially _Killian. After their outing on Sunday, she could tell the guy was the type who just won kids over, because he was nothing but a big kid himself.

_Just friends, _she reminded herself, _they're David's friends and he'd meet them all eventually anyway. _

"Hey," David whispered, "are you paying attention to this?"

Ruby looked over and frowned at Emma, but it wasn't one of those, "you're not doing your job, why are you spacing out?" looks, it was one of those, "we are going to have a long talk after this, because you like that guy, and I can see you're about to run" looks. There may have also been a hint of, "do you care if I go after this one?" mixed in as well. Emma wanted to remind her friend that there was a nice, young doctor downstairs who was completely infatuated with her and she didn't need to go messing with his heart, but she figured whatever Ruby had going on with Victor was pretty…open. They both seemed to be relentless flirts.

Emma tried her best to concentrate on what was being said in the interrogation room, but found it difficult with Elliot blocking her view of Jefferson. Still, what she _did _get from the conversation was that Jefferson knew Graham from work, and they were just catching up a little before he took his date, a woman named Elsa, back home. Jefferson had been trying to get in touch with Elsa all morning after he'd seen the news, but was unsuccessful. Elliot asked several questions about the previous murders and Jefferson had a solid alibi, so far. Pete could vouch for him all three Sundays, stating the man didn't leave until closing time (except for that last Sunday, when he talked to Graham), and after that, he went straight home with Elsa, and if he could get in touch with her, he swore her sister could place him there as well.

"He didn't do it," Emma whispered to David. She was certain of it, and the fact that he was David's friend wasn't the reason she was sure of his innocence.

"Yeah," David nodded, "I know. But still, he _was _the last person to see Graham and that means that maybe he or this Elsa woman saw something."

"Did you just go out this weekend and make a bunch of hot, new friends?" Ruby asked. Emma just rolled her eyes.


	7. The Girlfriend

"Hey," Jefferson saw David and Emma rushing by as Elliot took him out of the interrogation room.

"Can't really talk right now," David said, "We're following up with your girlfriend."

"That's not why you can't talk," Jefferson frowned, "I'm a cop too, remember? But I'm telling you, Elsa and Anna both can verify I was exactly where I said I was. I wouldn't do some fucked up shit like this."

She didn't know him like David did, but Emma was still good at knowing when someone was lying, and Jefferson was _not _lying. There was also the fact that he sought _them _out. True, many a criminal had tried that trick before, but Jefferson's intentions were to help, not to throw them off track.

"Emma?" Elliot looked over at her, and she could tell he wasn't about to ask her about the case.

"Later," she rolled her eyes, "Just get the information he has on the Winters' sisters so we can get down there." She was not having this conversation with him. Ever.

Ruby joined them in the hallway shortly after, bringing with her the recording of the interview. "I just got a text from Billy in forensics," she said, "I'm headed down there. You guys coming?"

"I'll go with you," David said, "Emma, get what you need from Lance and come get me when you're done." With that, he and Ruby took off towards the elevator.

If no one was around, Emma would have thrown an all-out fit at that moment. Instead, she tried her best to keep her composure. "Come on, Elliot," she said, trying not to sound completely irritated. Being stuck with someone you _really _did your best to avoid was never a good thing. The two of them brought Jefferson to an unused conference room and as Lance took information, Emma made sure to sit on the other side of Jefferson, away from her one-time beau.

"I can go with you," Lance suggested, "so Nolan and Lucas can keep working with Billy. It'll be a short trip-"

"Look," she sighed, "I just don't think that's a good idea."

Up until now, Jefferson had been quiet, only offering information when he was spoken to. He watched as the two agents had an awkward conversation, as if he weren't there at all. "I'm sorry," he spoke up, "If you two are going to continue this lovers' spat, I'd much rather be locked up in that interrogation room."

Emma shot him a death glare, "we are _not _lovers and this is _not _a lovers' spat."

"We could be," Lance grinned, "it worked before."

"Really?" She stood up, "this is a completely inappropriate conversation." She grabbed the notebook from Lance and tore out the page with the information she needed. After slamming the notebook back down, she frowned, "if it worked before, I wouldn't be trying so hard to avoid you."

"You dumped me!" he called after she took off, "not the other way around!"

***  
Elsa and Anna were as different as night and day. Not just in looks, but in personalities as well. The tall blonde was quieter, and more suspicious of the agents that darkened her doorstep. Anna on the other hand, acted as if they had all been best friends for quite some time.

"Of _course _Jefferson was here Sunday night!" Anna exclaimed, "He's here every Sunday, and doesn't leave until it's time to go to work on Monday morning."

"Anna..." Elsa warned.

"It's hook-up night," Anna whispered loudly, "they're trying to keep this all a secret. Why? I don't know. It's so dumb, they _obviously _more than just _like _each other."

"Anna!" Elsa shouted, "I'm sure they don't care if it's hook-up night or shopping night! Yes," She said, looking at Emma and David (Ruby had decided to stay with Billy), "Jefferson was here, Anna is obviously aware of it, and if you want to ask _her _boyfriend, he's still asleep. It's about time he got his ass out of bed."

"Fiancé!" Anna chimed, "remember? He proposed last week! Stop complaining about his sleeping habits. He's got a night shift tonight!"

Emma smiled, but bit back on the laugh that was threatening to come out. Anna was so cheerful, it was adorable. "We should probably talk to-" she realized she didn't know the fiancé's name.

"Kristoff," Anna supplied, "Let me go get him!"

Oh, these girls _had _to be a blast at parties. Still, one thing was off. Where the heck was Gracie? Surely he didn't just leave the girl at home while he carried on, did he?

"Elsa?" David asked, "Do you know Gracie?" Oh good, David was already on it.

"Jefferson's little girl?" she asked. When David nodded, she shook her head, "no. I mean, I know _of _her, but I haven't met her. Not yet anyway. Why?"

"I was just wondering if you maybe knew where she was." The fact that her friend was right on the mark with her line of thinking scared her sometimes.

"Paige has her," Elsa said, "She got stationed here about a year ago and then got out. She and Jefferson have some arrangement that lands our days together on Sundays."

"Paige?" Emma asked.

"His ex-wife," David informed her.

"You know Jefferson?" Elsa asked, "Personally?"

"Yes," David confirmed, "That's why it's important I clear this up as quickly as possible."

"He'd never hurt anyone," Elsa said, "But I'm assuming that as his friend, you know that."

"Okay!" Anna came back, her arm linked with a very groggy looking bear of a man, "Kristoff is awake!" She looked at her fiancé and laughed, "Sort of."

"Sorry," he mumbled, "what did you need?"

"They want to know about Jefferson!" Anna giggled.

"Elsa's boyfriend?" He asked, "I ran into him tearing through the house when I got home this morning." When Emma gave him a confused look, he snorted, "I mean, he was running into the kitchen for something and wasn't exactly _decent._ Obviously the guy wasn't expecting me to come home so early."

Emma groaned, she did _not _want to think about Jefferson running around the house naked. "About what time was that?" She asked, trying to push the picture from her head.

"I got off about three, takes me about fifteen to get home..." Kristoff muttered, "So, between three fifteen and three thirty."

"And I was still awake when they got home at eleven," Anna said.

"Then, he didn't leave until six," Elsa added, "For work."

Emma could almost see the relief flooding in as David relaxed. Their victim had been rushed to the hospital around five and from what the doctors had said, the drug hadn't had much time to work its way through his system. Jefferson was, just as he said and as she suspected, merely caught up in the web by accident. "Okay," she said, "Thank you. If we need anything else, we'll call."

"Wait," Elsa stopped them before they could leave, "I'm assuming that this is important to you because you're close to him. Don't mention anything about me."

"Why is he trying to hide you?" Emma asked.

"He isn't," she sighed, "it's me. He's just gotten to a place where he's good with his ex and I don't really want to get caught up in anything and change that. Don't say anything about me to anyone in whatever circle you have. Also, don't mention Paige. He said his brothers don't know that she's here and he really doesn't want that getting out yet."

"Why not?" Emma asked.

"Because things weren't exactly pleasant," David said, remembering his last few months in Florida. "It was kind of an ugly divorce and Jefferson wound up with full custody because she had some issues, and we took his side, because he's our brother." He looked at Elsa, "I won't say anything," he promised, "But I'm glad he's working things out with her."

***  
By the time she collected Henry and returned home that night, Emma was exhausted. She made sure to get her son fed and bathed, all the while congratulating herself for not falling asleep and cracking her head on the stove or bathtub in the process. Henry looked sleepy too, but that didn't stop him from bounding over to her bed and making himself at home. With a laugh, Emma grabbed some pajamas and disappeared into the bathroom to wash up and get changed. She joined him shortly after, wrapping and arm around him as he cuddled up to her.

"You didn't miss me or anything, did you?" She tickled his belly a little and giggled with him.

"Just a little," he stated. He always ran to her bed the Monday after a weekend with his dad. In a way, it broke her heart that she had to share him, but she knew it was for the best. The kid needed to know his father. It was only fair. "Momma?"

"Yeah?"

"Why doesn't dad like you?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Of _course _she and Neal weren't best friends, but she tried to keep it civil for Henry. At one point, the little boy was adamant that his parents would fall in love again and get married, but that dream seemed to die with Neal's never-ending line of girlfriends.

"His new girlfriend talks bad about you," he said, "and dad just laughs with her."

Another one? She hadn't even met the last four, and now he was dragging another woman into the kid's life. However, the fact that Henry didn't seem to like the woman was always a plus. "Don't worry about what they say about me," she said, "your dad loves you and that's what matters."

"You love me more," Henry stated.

What the hell was she supposed to say to that? "We both love you, Henry." She made it a point to be the bigger person, never talking bad about her ex in front of their son, but sometimes Neal made it so damn hard to be nice. "It's not a competition."

"Do you wanna know what she looks like?" Henry gave her a mischievous grin.

Well, if he wanted to tell her, why shouldn't she listen?

_Swan? I know it's a little late, but are you awake?_

Emma shifted a little, trying not to disturb her son, who was snoozing peacefully, all cuddled up to her. She at the offending phone on the nightstand and picked it up to read the text alert.

**_Yeah_**_. _She typed, **_Awake._**

_Sorry if I woke you. Meant to call earlier, but got stuck. Just getting home._

**_Everything okay?_**

_Yes. _

Yes? That was all he was going to say? What the hell did he wake her up for?

**_What's up?_**

_Nothing. Just promised I'd call, and I'd feel terrible if I blew you off. Figured I'd text in case you were asleep and didn't want to talk. But I didn't want you to think I'd forgotten about you._

Okay, that was kind of cute. Henry let out a little mumble and she froze. The text sounds probably weren't the best idea if she wanted to keep the kid asleep. Quickly, she turned the sound down before continuing.

**_I'd tell you to call now, but there is this adorable little lump cuddled up next to me. Wouldn't want to wake him._**

_That would be most unwise. Are you two coming to the barbecue on Saturday?_

Fuck. The barbecue. In all the chaos, she'd actually forgotten about it. It wouldn't hurt for Henry to meet David's friends. Right? It wasn't like Killian was expecting her to tell him "hey, here's the guy I'm kind of seeing, play nice". After the fiasco with Elliot earlier that day, the idea of bringing Henry to meet _anyone _was a little unnerving.

_Emma?_

**_Sorry. Yes. We're coming._**

_Everything alright?_

**_Yes. I'm fine._**

_David's coming too. Hey...did you ever get sick?_

**_No. I must have the immune system of Captain America._**

_Or Wolverine._

She laughed at that. It was nice to meet someone who enjoyed his comics.

_Whoops. Looks like my little lump woke up. I should turn the volume down on this thing. Talk to you tomorrow?_

**_Sounds good._**

_Good night, Swan._

**_Night, Jones._**


	8. Barbeques

Emma tried to keep the panic at bay as David pulled up to Robin's house. It had been a rough week, and the promise of a good end of summer barbecue was a nice thought, but she couldn't help but feel nervous. _Just a friend, _she reminded herself. _He's meeting David's friends, who happen to be guys and Killian is one of them._ Mary Margaret seemed completely unaware at the tension that was growing in the back seat and babbled on about how much fun it would be to see everyone again and how she couldn't wait to meet Regina.

If she only knew.

Emma still felt that Regina would _not _be happy to see her there. Even though Killian had assured her it would be fine, she was _invited_ and that's what mattered.

When they arrived, Robin was just as warm, welcoming and friendly as he had been the day she first met him. Regina seemed a little friendlier and Emma wondered if Killian had said something. She really hoped that wasn't the case. She didn't need other people fighting her battles for her.

Once inside, Henry quickly decided Roland and Grace were far more interesting than the adults and took full advantage of Roland's trampoline offer. Emma could barely tell her son to be careful before he was out the door. Robin assured her Jefferson was out there acting the fool and keeping an eye on the kids. That was another thing she needed to worry about. Jefferson wasn't mad about being pulled in for questioning, but he _had _expressed worry that either Emma or David would say something about Elsa and Paige. He wasn't ready for that yet, and they both promised to keep their mouths shut. The problem was, now that she was aware of the need to keep quiet, she was afraid something might slip.

Killian arrived shortly after they did, and Adelaide ran straight to Emma and immediately bombarded her with questions. She noticed Regina didn't seem too thrilled, but the woman didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry," Killian apologized as he retrieved his chatty little girl, "She's been going on about you all week."

"Oh, she's okay," Emma laughed, flattered that she'd made an impression. Aside from their Sunday excursion, Emma hadn't seen the little girl all week. The most contact she'd had was when Killian called her Thursday. Emma had heard the little girl babbling in the background.

"Can we come over again?" She asked, "I like your 'partment."

"Addy," Killian set the girl back down, "we don't invite ourselves places. Go play with the kids."

"They're out with Hat," Robin said, "we got our trampoline, so everyone's giving it a go."

Adelaide didn't have to be told twice. There was a trampoline outside and that was where she wanted to be. "Be careful!" Killian called after her. After a moment, he seemed to change his mind, "I'd better go out there."

"Hat's got them," Robin laughed.

Killian mulled it over for a bit, "She's okay on the trampoline?"

"They're all children," Robin assured him, "Even Hat. She'll be fine. They know to be careful around the little ones. Besides, she joins us for war. If she can handle that, she can handle a bloody trampoline."

"What's that?" Emma asked.

"It's a game we used to play," David explained.

"_Still_ play," Regina stated, "I still have the battle scars from last month."

"Oh." Emma decided right then and there, she would _not _be playing war games with these guys.

Regina looked at Robin, "why don't you get the grill started?"

"Alright," Robin grinned, "let's get this party going. Can't let the kids have all the fun, can we?"

The party moved outside, Emma and Mary Margaret tried their best to get Regina to open up more while the guys alternated between jumping on the trampoline, tackling children, and actual grilling. Henry seemed to be getting along with the kids pretty well, though he was shy around the other adults and clung to David. Finally, Jefferson reached out and started getting the kid to open up. After a few minutes, he was going just as crazy as everyone else.

Mary Margaret had taken her son out of the infant carrier so she could feed him. David came by a couple times to check on his wife and son, but eventually was shooed off by Emma. "You have your boys over there," she said, "let us gossip in peace."

"What's his name?" Regina asked.

"James," Mary Margaret answered, "it was his brother's name. He joined the military right after nine eleven."

Emma remembered the story well. David was still in high school when he lost his big brother. From what she'd heard, they had been extremely close and losing him was devastating. Regina seemed to read between the lines, and offered condolences.

"So," Mary Margaret changed the subject quickly, "what I'm interested in knowing, is why Miss Emma hasn't bothered to tell me _anything_ about seeing our handsome friend over there." She nodded towards Killian and grinned, "You're holding out on me. I thought we were best friends, too." With a little fake pout, she giggled.

"What?" Emma felt the heat rising in her cheeks and she knew if she wasn't red yet, she would be soon.

"Well," she continued, "David may have mentioned it, but he didn't give me details. I've kept my mouth shut and waited long enough. Tell me what's going on."

"I'd kind of like to know too," Regina said, "I mean, he hasn't given anyone a second glance, then you waltz in and suddenly, he can't stop talking about you."

"He talks about me?" Dammit. Her ears felt like they were the same shade as her jacket now.

"How long have you known him, Regina?" Mary Margaret asked.

"A few years," Regina answered.

Great. Her best friend and his friend were freaking bonding over her dating habits. This was just perfect.

"I hardly know him," Emma tried to explain. Jesus.

"Yet," Regina informed Mary Margaret, "they've had two dates. Three if you count Sunday, when he and Addy took her to the movies and the park. They've known each other a week."

"He told you about that?" How in the hell could she hide?

"He said something about the disaster of the first date and then praying you'd give him another shot." Regina grinned.

Okay, well at least she wasn't telling her to back off or get lost.

"What was the disaster?" Mary Margaret asked, "Come on, Emma. He's a guy, and he's telling his friends about you. Give me details!"

Oh god. As if she needed an interrogation. "I _really _don't want to get into this right now." She gave her friend a pleading look, hoping to high heaven that the woman would give her a break.

"He likes you," Regina said, a bit more seriously, "I hope you aren't just messing around with him. Or that little girl of his."

Fuck. "I don't mess around," she said, "It's just...new."

"Sounds like he's smitten already," Mary Margaret teased.

"He'll get sick of me eventually," Emma said, then immediately wished she hadn't.

"What do you mean by that?" Regina frowned.

"It's complicated," she said.

"And what if he doesn't get sick of you?" Regina didn't drop it, "you have no intention of getting attached? Because the way I see it, that little girl is already head over heels for you."

"It's not that," Emma tried to explain, "it's just..." Dammit. Why did she have to open her mouth, "they always leave. No one sticks around for me."

"Emma..."

She hated it when Mary Margaret got all maternal.

After Neal, she didn't let anyone leave her. She was the one to leave. Before things got complicated, before they mattered. She never had to worry about someone not sticking around, because she didn't care.

Now she cared and that scared her more than anything. Because when she cared, they left her.

"I'm trying," she assured them. Though she still felt that if anyone was going to get hurt in all this, it was going to be her. He'd get bored and move on, leaving her to pick up the pieces.

"Regina," Robin called, "burgers are done and the chicken isn't far behind. Could you grab the sides?"

Regina nodded and stood up and Emma stood as well, "I'll help," she said. Regina looked surprised, but thanked her, leading her back into the house towards the kitchen.

"He isn't like that," Regina said, once they were alone, "I mean, I can understand where you're coming from, being a single parent and all, but he's coming from a similar place."

"I'm just not used to it," Emma admitted, "when a guy doesn't turn around and run. I know he's your friend, and by default, you're supposed to hate anyone you deem not good enough, and maybe I'm not, but I like him. If he wants to keep seeing me, I think he's crazy, but I'm not going to complain, because I want to keep seeing him too. And I'm not going to hurt him. I'm not like that either." What was it about this woman that made her feel so small?

"I don't hate you," Regina said, "but you do worry me. I take my god child's happiness very seriously, and her father is one of my closest friends."

"Understandable," Emma nodded.

"I want to like you," she said, "don't make me hate you."

Well fuck.

"What's taking so long?" Jefferson poked his head into the kitchen, "the kids have their burgers and Rob's got the chicken ready."

"I guess we don't want them to starve," Regina smiled, "shall we?" She and Emma loaded up as much as they could carry and Jefferson made himself useful by grabbing what they'd left behind. Once they had it outside, the kids swarmed to the table, ready to grab various sides, most opting for chips and dip, leaving the healthier salads and fruits for the adults.

Emma noticed that Henry had loaded his plate to almost breaking point, "hey," she said, grabbing it before he could spill it, "save some for the rest of us, kid."

"But momma, I'm starving," he complained.

"Here," she grabbed her own plate and split up his over the top serving, "if you're still hungry when you're done, you can get more." She set her plate down on the picnic table she had been sitting at earlier and walked Henry over to the smaller picnic table that the other kids had started to occupy. "Hang out with your new friends."

"Kay!" He said excitedly, diving into a conversation with Roland and Grace. They were each a couple years older than him, and Adelaide was the baby of the group, but it didn't seem to be a problem. They all seemed to enjoy the company.

Emma went back to the table that had been set up for the adults and tried to locate her plate that now seemed to be lost in a sea of plates and containers. "Right here, Swan," Killian set down two beer bottles by her plate, "give me a minute, I need to get Addy set."

Dammit, she was turning red again. It didn't help that Mary Margaret started in on her the second she sat down. Of course he'd pick the seats across from her and David. James' carrier was now on the ground, next to the table and David had the little boy over his shoulder. Emma was actually impressed at how he could balance a baby and fix his plate at the same time. Especially since this was his first rodeo.

It wasn't long before Killian joined them, with a plate that rivaled Henry's. "Hope you don't mind beer," he said, "I forgot to bring the good stuff."

"Beer is fine," she said, "thank you."

"Look at that," Robin tossed a chip at Killian, "the damn pirate forgot his rum. What a pity."

"Don't start," Killian laughed and tossed the chip back, "just because you can't stomach anything harder than a little ale-"

"That's a bloody lie!" Robin shouted.

"If you say so, mate." Killian shrugged, a smirk on his face.

"Do we need to set up another children's table?" Regina asked as she eyeballed both Robin and Killian.

"Come on Regina," Jefferson piped in, "how long have you known us? We were big kids then and we're still big kids now."

"I don't see David acting like he's twelve," Regina pointed out.

"He grew up," Killian said, "and it's a damn shame."

"I can still act twelve!" David protested, "I just prefer not to at the moment."

Mary Margaret gave Emma a look that pretty much confirmed David's statement. Emma couldn't help but giggle, she knew all too well how ridiculous David could get. Still, he was also really good at being the big brother. He and Mary Margaret looked out for her, and by the way the guys talked to and about David, she could tell that at one point, he looked out for them.

"I'm full mommy," Henry came to the big table and held his plate for Emma to see. To her surprise, it was completely clean. "Can I go play now?"

"Me too!" Adelaide came running up, her plate completely empty as well, "I'm done! I'm done!"

"Wait!" Grace shouted, "don't go without us!"

"Where are you guys going?" Emma asked.

"The trampoline," Henry stated, as if it were obvious.

"You can play," Emma said, "but I don't want you jumping around on that until your food has settled." She did _not _need another puking kid.

"You kids know better than to shake up a full stomach," Robin turned to look at Roland, who, like Grace, was trying to eat as quickly as possible.

"But it's a party," Roland protested.

"Why don't you watch some television first?" He suggested.

"Oh!" Grace's eyes lit up, "it's Saturday! Disney channel has movies!" The other kids suddenly forgot about the trampoline and once everyone had finished, they all ran inside.

"Four puking children would not be fun," Regina laughed.

"Hat would take care of them!" Robin exclaimed.

"Like hell!" Jefferson countered.

Emma couldn't help but watch the mock fight and laugh. David and Killian eventually joined in, leaving the women to wonder if they should move before the food started flying. She looked over at David, who still had a sleeping James over his shoulder. How the hell was that kid not awake?

"Alright children," Mary Margaret finally shouted, once she stopped giggling, "There are four boys who are going to go on time out if they don't start behaving."

"Do we get a spanking?" Jefferson asked, "Because I can't really learn my lesson without one."

Killian rolled his eyes and threw a roll at Jefferson, "you're such a bloody pervert."

"So are you!" He stated, "You're just on your best behavior because mommy and daddy let you bring a girl over."

"He's lying," Killian informed Emma.

"I'm sure he is," she smiled. Though, she was sure Jefferson was probably telling the truth. At least partially.

"You don't believe me?" He had leaned over and whispered it in her ear. At this point, Emma was certain she was permanently red. Then, he made it even worse by kissing her on the cheek. In front of fucking everyone.

Goddammit.

"Breathe Emma," Mary Margaret teased.

"She's redder than her damn jacket!" Robin stated, as if it wasn't obvious.

"Good god," David remarked, "I've never seen little miss smart ass so...speechless!"

"Shut up," Emma muttered through an embarrassed grin.

"What's so funny?" Grace came back outside and sat next to Jefferson.

"Your Uncle Killian is making Miss Emma blush," Jefferson said, Grace's giggles making Emma turn an even worse shade of red.

"Can we go on the trampoline now?" It was Henry. When did he get out here?

"Yeah," she said slowly, hoping her voice didn't sound as shaky as she felt. He didn't seem to care, instead, he made a mad dash for the trampoline. Fuck. He didn't see everything, did he? He certainly didn't act like it. As innocent as it was, kids got crazy ideas in their heads when it came to dating. Henry had never even met anyone she'd been out with before and now, here he was, in the middle of this whole new group because she fucking agreed to a second date.

What the hell was she doing?

"Yaaaaaaaaaay!" Adelaide came running outside with Roland. Grace didn't stay much longer either, finding the trampoline much more fun than adult conversation.

"Do you need help cleaning up?" Emma volunteered. Regina started to shake her head, but Emma laughed, "won't take no for an answer."

"I'll help too," Mary Margaret offered.


	9. Welcome to the Hunger Games

Even though Regina had initially protested, it seemed she enjoyed having Emma and Mary Margaret help her out. "I've been outnumbered for so long," she said, once they were in the kitchen, "I can tell it'll be nice to have you two around." Okay, so Regina was obviously under the impression that Killian _wanted_ to keep bringing her and Henry around. At this point, Emma was pretty sure the woman was right.

"How did you meet Robin?" Mary Margaret asked.

"Through Killian actually," she said, "after I stopped hating him." She laughed when the other two gave her confused looks. "He wasn't good enough for my best friend."

Suddenly, it all made perfect sense to Emma. The two had obviously put aside their differences and bonded over their mutual loss. Adelaide wasn't just a godchild, she was the daughter of Regina's best friend. Of course she'd be concerned about anyone who had the potential to hurt her.

"Ems?" Killian poked his head into the kitchen, "your presence is being requested at the trampoline."

"And who is doing the requesting?" She asked, a small grin on her face.

"You can come in," Regina stated, "Just because we've formed a group doesn't mean we're conspiring against you."

Killian laughed and stepped all the way in, "sorry, but gatherings of women usually mean bad things for us men." He looked back at Emma, "little guy, claims he knows you. Goes by Henry?"

Her heart dropped. "Is he okay?" Her son never liked taking a break from play time, so it worried her a little that he would stop and ask for her.

"Oh, he's fine," he assured her, "we just need another team member. He suggested you. Might want to ditch the coat, love, you'll roast."

"You're playing war?" Regina asked.

"Don't we always?" He smirked.

"I want in," David walked in, "I see you've upgraded the weapons."

Mary Margaret took her son from David, "don't break anything."

"Wait," Emma frowned, "I swore to myself I would sit that game out."

"She's teasing," David grinned, though Emma still wasn't sure about it. "Come on, just play."

"Please?" Killian asked.

"Okay," she said nervously.

"That makes us uneven again," Killian stated, "Regina?"

"I want the Tommy gun," she said.

"I want a safe zone so I can watch you all maul each other." Mary Margaret laughed. _That _certainly didn't make Emma feel any better.

Everyone went outside and Emma noticed the kids seemed exceptionally excited. On the deck, Robin had a large container and the kids were all gathered around it. Upon closer inspection, she realized it was filled with Nerf guns. Jefferson came around with another box, filled with the corresponding ammo.

"Regina gets the Tommy," Killian informed them, "It was the terms of our agreement."

"Alright men," Robin grinned, "rules are simple. No head-shots, rough play is okay, but be careful of the short players, three shots and you're out. Honor system, so let's play fair. Each team has ten minutes to get their fort together and secure their flag. The deck is a war free zone." He looked at Mary Margaret, "care to time us?" She nodded and he continued with the rules, "there are several melee weapons scattered about the game zone. Sorry, but if someone stabs or beheads you, that's an automatic out. P. are allowed, weapon theft is expected. No mercy for noobs."

"That would be you," Killian whispered to Emma, "welcome to the Hunger Games."

She wasn't quite sure how she felt about that.

The kids picked their weapons first, but Emma managed to find a cool looking crossbow. "Automatic win!" Killian shouted, "We've got Dixon!" He tossed her the crossbow ammo.

"Bloody hell," Robin muttered, "you _always_ get Dixon!"

"We have the Tommy gun," Jefferson reminded his teammate.

"So I'm guessing teams are assigned and ready?" Mary Margaret asked. When everyone agreed, she pulled out her phone, "ten minutes starts...now!"

"This way," Killian informed his team, which consisted of Emma, David, Henry, and Adelaide. He led them to the side of the yard opposite of their enemies. Two rather large trees stood there, "any climbers?"

"Mom can!" Henry volunteered.

"Mom cannot," Emma made a face. No way in hell was she shimmying up a tree.

"Me, daddy!" Adelaide giggled, "Me!"

"We have enough for two guards," David said, "I can hide her up there, keep an eye on her, and she can pick people off."

"She's a baby!" Emma protested.

"This is war!" Adelaide stated proudly.

"We play all the time," Killian said, "Dave's here. She'll be fine." He handed the flag to David, "hide this up there with the munchkin."

David took the red flag and knelt down so Adelaide could climb on his back. "Hang on kiddo," he said as he made his way up the tree. Emma shut her eyes, worried that broken bones were going to be the next big event. Thankfully, David climbed back down without injury. "She's in and pretty hidden behind those leaves."

"And if she falls?" Emma asked.

"She won't," David said, "I belted her in. However, I might lose my pants if I try to run."

"I told you she'd be fine," Killian said, "Dave, stay as hidden as possible."

"Hey!" Adelaide shouted, "I finded a sword!"

"Toss it to Henry!" Killian instructed. A few seconds later, a foam sword fell to the ground. Killian handed it to Henry, "if you can't shoot, stab away."

"Five minutes!" Mary Margaret shouted.

"What's the plan?" Emma asked.

"We split up," Killian said as he scanned the yard, "it looks like they're setting up on the hill. A straight on run for it won't work. Take cover anywhere you can. If we can get them to split to come after us, we can take them out one by one and then storm the fort. If anyone gets by us, Addy and Dave can pick them off here."

Emma silently cursed Robin for having such a big yard.

"Mom!" Henry said, "There's a sword on the trampoline!"

"You're going that way," Killian told Emma, "see if you can get their fort from behind. Grab that sword on your way. Henry, go for the picnic table. I'll lag behind and cover the two of you as best I can," He continued to go over their game plan until Mary Margaret started the final countdown. Once she hit "one", everyone scattered about the yard.

Emma ran as fast as she could for the trampoline, realizing Roland was already on her. Her destination wasn't far, but it felt like miles away. She managed to dodge a couple shots and get a few in, but she missed. "Dammit," she muttered, trying to pick up speed. The kid could run. Once she made it to the trampoline, she climbed on, grabbed the sword and slid over to the other side, jumping off and taking cover. She loaded her bow and stood up to take aim, hitting the kid once. That only seemed to motivate him more. She loaded up another shot, but didn't want to be a sitting target for anyone else.

"I got him!" She heard Killian shout and Roland got hit again. Emma took the opportunity to run, noticing a tree not far from the enemy base. She hid behind the tree and looked out to see Henry scrambling to get out from under the table. Jefferson was standing in front of the table, but his back was turned. Henry quickly climbed to the top of the table, reached around and swiped his sword across Jefferson's neck. "Ha!" She heard him scream in victory. He grabbed the gun Jefferson had been carrying and took off towards the fort. Emma wondered for a moment if she should be worried about her son's sudden blood-lust.

"Well," a voice sounded. Emma turned back to see Robin standing in front of her, "what do we have here?" He raised his weapon, but she ducked just before he managed to fire a shot. Without thinking, she bowled forward and tackled him to the ground, making sure to pin him as best she could, knowing that if he got up, she was dead.

"Damn, Swan," Killian laughed, "looks like you and your boy have played this game before." He picked up the sword she managed to drop in her tackle and "beheaded" Robin.

"Roland is still on our tail," he said, "I managed to ditch him, and then he killed Henry, now he's looking for us."

Emma stood up, "what about our guards?"

"After Henry killed Hat, I saw Gracie run off towards our base. She and Regina must have been the guards. Addy and Dave shot her though."

"Regina has the Tommy gun," Emma reminded him.

"Bloody hell," He growled, "we can probably get out a couple shots...hey!" An orange dart bounced off his chest. Emma loaded her bow and swung around, shooting Roland for the last time.

"That's two for me," Killian frowned.

"I've managed to stay bullet free," Emma stated.

"We might make it," he said, "come on, let's storm the castle!"

They ran over to the hill and found it unguarded, the flag sitting on top, ready to be stolen. "It's a trap," Emma decided.

Killian looked around, but found no sign of Regina anywhere. "We may have a shot," he said, "come on." He climbed up the hill and grabbed the flag. No one came after them.

"Let's make a break for it," Emma said and the two ran back to their base. Grace was sitting on the ground by their trees, looking quite put out that she'd been shot.

Killian was almost home when an orange dart came out of the tree and hit him. "What the-"

Regina stepped out before Emma could grab the flag; "I wouldn't do that if I were you," she said, pointing her weapon at Emma.

"Adelaide!" Emma looked up in the tree, "can you shoot her?"

David stepped up behind Emma and "beheaded" her. "It really sucks when you have double agents on your team, doesn't it?" He laughed and grabbed the flag from Killian. Adelaide tossed down their flag to Regina and she and David ran towards the other base, making the blue team the champions.

"Too bad David's pants didn't fall down around his ankles and trip him," Emma muttered.

"Can I get down now, daddy?" Adelaide asked.

"I don't know, darling, you _did_ shoot me!" He said.

"'Gina said I could have cookies!" She giggled. Grace didn't say anything, but Emma swore she heard the girl laughing.

Killian rolled his eyes and laughed. "Alright, I'm coming." He looked over at Emma before making his ascent, "she sold me out for cookies!"

"Mom!" Henry ran over, "what happened?"

"Your Uncle David is a dirty, rotten cheater," Emma informed him.

"But cookies!" Adelaide said again as Killian brought her down.

"I want Emma on our team next time," Robin stated as he and Roland came up to the tree, "here I was thinking you'd need kid gloves."

"What happened to no mercy for noobs?" She sassed.

"Belt?" David asked as he and Regina joined them.

"Up in the tree, mate," Killian said with a smirk.

"Hey!" Jefferson shouted as he ran up towards the group. He went right for Henry and put the little boy in a headlock and gave him a noogie, "not cool dude!"

Henry started giggling, "No mercy for noobs!" He continued chanting this until Jefferson let him go.

"I hate to be the buzz-kill," Mary Margaret said, "but I'm still getting sleepy way too easily, and I was only watching you guys."

"The sun isn't even setting!" Robin teased.

"Can't we stay?" Henry pleaded.

David ruffled the boy's hair, "you never run out of energy, do you?" When Henry just pouted, David sighed, "we'll do it again."

"Of course!" Robin grinned, "now that we're back together, there'll be plenty of barbecues and games."

The group started making their way back inside when Emma felt a hand wrap around her wrist, pulling her back a bit, "Ems?"

Dammit, why was it so cute when he called her that? "Yeah?" She turned to look at him.

"When can I see you again?" He asked, "I can't wait another week." The way he said it made it sound as if going all last week without seeing her had almost killed him.

"It's hard during the week," she said, "I've got work and Henry."

"I didn't mean to upset you earlier," he said, "at the table. If that's why you'd rather not see me-"

"You didn't upset me," she said, "I just don't deal with that much teasing all too well. It's fine, really. As red as I was, I still found it pretty sweet. Though, if David didn't have a baby in his arms, I would have socked him."

Killian laughed, "I think you gave Rob quite the surprise when you tackled him. The last time we brought in a noob, she played it safe."

"I play to win," she stated.

"Stay," he said softly, "I'll take you and Henry home."

"I don't think I'm up for another round of Hunger Games," her voice shook a little, suddenly nervous. Fuck. Why?

"Oh," he laughed, "one round a party. None of us can handle that much slaughter. I mean it though," he tugged her a little closer, "just stay a little while longer. Please?"

"I'm out of your way..." She stammered.

"Since when does that matter?" He chuckled, "I promise Addy won't get sick again. Come on, say yes before Dave starts honking because you're taking too long."

"Okay," she nodded. She couldn't help but smile when he grinned. It should be fucking illegal to be so charming. "I have to get Henry's booster seat," she told him, though her feet felt glued to the ground.

"Alright," he said as he leaned over to give her a soft, sweet kiss.

"What was that for?" She was blushing again, dammit.

"Might not get a chance later," he shrugged, "come on, let's go get your stuff."


	10. Sleepovers and Chaos

**A/N: I know we've got a rapid update going. But I'd like to get this completely available to those who follow me on FFN. :)  
**

"So, does this count?" He asked, taking one hand off the wheel and reaching over to lace his fingers with hers.

"Does what count?" She asked, casting a quick glance into the back seat where Henry and Adelaide were chattering away, paying absolutely no attention to the grown ups. She wasn't sure she wanted to explain why she was holding Killian's hand, but she _was_ sure that it felt good, and that she didn't want to let go.

"As three," he laughed, "Or four. Do you count Sunday? I count Sunday. Okay, four. Does this count as four?"

"Why do you insist on keeping count?" She giggled.

"It's fun," he shrugged.

"Yeah," she smiled, "it can count," As far as dates went, especially what he counted as dates, it was the least disastrous. Unless you counted getting your ass beat in a game of war as a disaster.

"Mom! We have to teach Addy how to play zombie killer! Can we? Please?" Henry begged.

"It's getting late," Emma reminded him. Really, it was just about eight, but Henry and Adelaide were still subject to bedtimes. Little children were notoriously cranky when they didn't get their sleep.

"Please?" They both asked.

"What's zombie killer?" Killian asked, unsure of whether or not a two year old would be bothered by such a game.

"It's Plants versus Zombies," Emma said, "it's cartoony and actually kind of cute. Henry's been addicted since the day I downloaded the stupid thing. Three months ago." She tried to emphasize how sick she was of the damn game.

"I don't mind if you don't," he decided.

"Are you kidding?" She laughed.

"Of course not," he assured her, "they'll tire themselves out and we can watch television. Besides, it's the weekend, sleeping in is mandatory." He gave her a smirk that had her stomach doing flip flops. It was innocent, right? They'd come over, play a few video games and then he'd be taking Adelaide home and Emma wouldn't do anything stupid.

***  
One game turned into a couple hours as the kids sprawled themselves out on the floor, giving the tablet their undivided attention. Emma and Killian had Goonies going on the television, but the kids were so engrossed in their game that anything could have been playing.

The adults laughed more at the children then at the movie. Statements like, "No! Use the butter cannon!" And, "his head popped off!" Echoed through the apartment.

It wasn't until the kids were starting to doze off that Emma decided to ask if they just wanted to stay the night. Against her better judgement, but with two kids in the house, would she really feel like getting into trouble?

This was only their third date anyway. Fourth, if you counted Sunday.

Killian counted Sunday.

"I'll go pull out the extra bed," Emma said, scooping Henry into her arms. Killian picked up Adelaide and followed her into Henry's room.

He smiled when Emma put the boy down on the bed. "Superman?" He whispered.

"And Batman," she replied, pulling out the spare. Henry didn't seem to be bothered by the movement when the trundle pulled out and popped up. She moved it so Killian could have room to tuck his little girl in. Emma ducked out of his way and went back to Henry, quickly getting him under the covers and kissing him goodnight. The boy didn't even respond, already too far into dreamland to worry about the waking world. Adelaide was in the same state, unaware that she had even been moved and tucked in.

The adults left the room, Emma shutting off the light before closing the door a little. She flipped the hall light on so a little light could peek through. "He doesn't care for the dark," she explained.

Killian nodded, "neither does Addy. So, do you think some more Netflix is in order for those of us who choose to stay up past our bedtimes?"

Emma giggled, "I turn into a pumpkin after midnight, but I don't think a little Netflix would hurt."

He laughed and took her arm, pulling her into him and giving her a quick kiss before she pulled away.

"Killian!" She hissed, though she was grinning like an idiot, "the kids-"

"Are asleep," he said, "just let me kiss you."

Well, who was she to argue with logic?

That was where it went all downhill, because damn, the man could kiss, and it got her all riled up in ways she _really_ didn't need right now. At the moment though, common sense was taking a backseat to hormones as she practically dragged him into her bedroom, shutting and locking the door behind her.

"You can't sleep in here," she blurted out, completely contradicting the fact that she was literally about to take him to bed. "Fuck, I didn't mean it like that."

"I get it," he laughed, "no worries, we can hang out and I can slip on out to the couch before anyone knows I was here."

Hang out. Well, that was an interesting way to put it.

What the hell was she doing?

"Hey," he said, "I really _did_ mean Netflix." It was as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. Like he saw both the desire and doubt in her eyes.

"I know," she replied, hoping her words weren't as shaky as she felt. It was stupid and irresponsible, but she'd be lying if she said she didn't want it, didn't want him.

What good was it to lie to oneself?

But dammit, what the hell was she thinking? She never had a guy over when henry was home, and now, here she was, breaking every single rule she had in one night. Looking up at him though, was like looking in a mirror, his eyes reflecting all the same questions right back at her. He'd already made it perfectly clear he was willing to take a step back, that he wouldn't push her, even though he wanted her just as much as she wanted him.

It would change everything. It would hurt that much more when he left, because who was she kidding? She was already falling hard for the guy.

Killian smiled at her and took her face in his hands, leaning down to place a soft kiss on her forehead. It didn't escape her that he seemed to be shaking, just a little.

Was he as nervous as she was? (Why was she nervous? It was just sex. Geez)

Maybe, he was falling too. (Wasn't that a nice thought?)

_Fuck Netflix. _

***  
Emma groaned as the obnoxious chirping sounded. It wasn't her alarm, what the hell was it? She rolled over onto her back and attempted to find the offending technology, her eyes still giving her a fuzzy picture in the darkness of her room.

Wait. Why was it so dark? Didn't she leave the hall light on for the kids?

Maybe Killian shut it off when he went to the living room.

Finally, things came into focus and she saw a very groggy, very _naked _Killian still in her room.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

"Hello?" He mumbled, picking up the chirping phone. Oh...that's what that obnoxious sound was.

"Where the hell have you been?" A panicked voice shouted. It was so loud, Emma could hear it word for word. It was David, and he sounded terrified.

Emma quickly reached over the side of the bed and found her shirt, throwing it over her head before she got up to turn the lights on. Killian made an annoyed groan when the room brightened and Emma continued looking for her phone, all while finishing getting dressed as she found her clothes all about the room. Her jeans were still missing, but she found Killian's and tossed them to him as he argued with David. Finally, she looked at him and realized he was _definitely _not talking on _his_ phone.

Killian took the phone away from his ear, "Emma, what are you _doing?"_

Emma quickly went over and retrieved her phone from him. She looked at the jeans she'd thrown at him and then back up at him, hoping he'd get the hint. People didn't just call to chat at this hour, something was wrong. David sounded freaked, and at three in the morning, that couldn't be good. She put the phone up to her ear and took a deep breath, knowing that after he said his piece, he'd have a nice lecture for her and overprotective brother speech for Killian. "It's three in the morning," she said, as coolly as possible, "What's going on?"

"Something happened," David said, "at the hospital-"

"What?" Emma's heart sank down into the pit of her stomach. Had the psycho gone back to finish the job?

"Let me finish!" David exclaimed. His tone completely caught her off guard. The man was tightly wound, but he _never _shouted at her. Not like that. "Sorry," he apologized before continuing, "look, something happened at the hospital. Humbert's okay, but we were all there too."

Of course they were there. They'd been there several times throughout the week to talk to their victim. What did that prove? Yes, it was scary that they tried to finish the job, but the fact was that they _didn't _and that meant things were okay again.

"We're all targets," David continued, "You, me, Killian and Ruby. Maybe Jefferson, because he was there too. We're also getting the list of officers on rotation for guard duty all this week."

"What makes you think we're targets?" Emma asked, "Did someone say something?"

"Someone hit Killian's place," David said, "and Robin's been trying to get in touch with him, but he wasn't answering his damn phone, and I was trying to get in touch with you and Ruby. Ruby's fine, but dammit Emma, you need to turn the ringer up on your phone."

Emma pulled her phone away from her ear and did a quick check. She'd missed six calls. "Sorry," she said after she brought the phone back up, "Well, you know Killian's here now, so you can stop worrying. What do you need us to do?"

"Sit tight, get the kids ready," David said, "I'm on my way."

"We have a car," she rolled her eyes. Even though he couldn't see her annoyance, she was certain he picked up her tone.

"Yeah," he said, "I wouldn't trust it. Ruby's blew up."

Oh. Shit.

"Emma?"

She didn't realize her lack of a response might worry him, "yeah?"

"I'm almost there, okay? I had to get Mary Margaret and the baby out of our house, that's what took so long. Just grab what you can and we'll get you out of there." He hung up, obviously not wanting to waste any more of her time.

"Swan?" Killian asked.

"We need to get out of here," she said as she grabbed an overnight bag from underneath her bed.

"What?" he gave her a funny look. Apparently, he and David hadn't gotten much further than "where the hell have you been".

"Just finish getting dressed," she instructed, "i'm going to throw a few things in here for me and Henry. David's on his way."

Killian did as he was told, still in a half-asleep fog, and now, in a complete state of confusion. Still, he didn't question her as he set about the room, finding the rest of his things and getting dressed. "I'll get the kids," he offered.

Emma was grateful, not wanting to be the one to try and keep from scaring them. A rude awakening like this would _not _be easy. "I'll be there in a minute," she said, watching him nod as he left the room. She could explain everything on the way. Better yet, David could explain everything, seeing as he had the most details.

Sleepy children's voices were complaining from the other room, sounding more annoyed than scared. Emma sighed in relief at that, knowing that annoyed children were far easier to deal with. She closed up her bag and made her way into the hall so she could start helping get the kids put together.

She was still in some strange limbo between the waking world and the slow motion fog she felt she was moving in. "I got some clothes momma," Henry said, meeting her in the hall. She set the bag down and knelt to eye level with her son. "Where are we goin'?"

Emma took the clothes from Henry and opened the bag so she could put them inside. "Just a little trip, kid," she said. Probably an out of the way hotel or even a safe house.

"Can we bring the zombies?"

A laugh escaped her. It was both comforting and adorable that in this insane situation, all he could think about was his game. "Yeah, I'll grab it on the way out."

After that, everything happened so fast, no one had time to register anything. It started with a crash sounding from the front room and ended with a rain of bullets whizzing through the apartment.


	11. Hospitals

Emma woke up, wondering where the hell she was. It wasn't her hallway, she was in a bed, and was pretty sure a decent amount of time had passed. Everything was bright and blurry, her head was spinning, and what the hell was stuck to her hand? She blinked a couple times, but it didn't help. Frustrated, she blindly tried to get rid of whatever was stuck to her.

"Hey," a hand clasped over hers, "let's leave that alone, shall we?"

"Killian?" God, why did he sound so far away? "Why is it so bright?" She pulled her hand away to rub at her eyes. Slowly, things started to come into focus.

"I'm going to take a wild guess here," he laughed, "You feel like hell."

"Where are the kids?" She asked. Holy shit, she was in a hospital.

"They're fine," he assured her, "a little shaken, but not a scratch. Dave has them in the waiting room. He wanted to take them to the safe house, but they cried until he promised to wait until they could see for themselves that you were alright."

"What?" She tried to sit up, but a shooting pain ripped through her, as if her entire body was protesting the movement. "What the hell?"

"Relax," he said, his voice gentle, "tell me love, what do you remember?"

Dammit, she couldn't remember a thing. One minute she was talking to Henry, the next, she was doing her best to cover him. Holy shit. "Did I get shot?"

"You got hit twice," he confirmed, "Both managed to lodge into your right shoulder, but thankfully, neither damaged anything vital."

"Well that explains why I'm sore and not dead," she grumbled, "why didn't David just take the kids?" They didn't need to be here, they needed to be someplace out of the way and safe.

"Emma," Killian stopped her before she started getting too excited, "they're perfectly safe here. There are agents with Dave, Ruby and the kids. Plus, they caught the shooter."

"He's not the killer though, is he?" She asked. No, their killer was neat. He wouldn't have done something so sloppy, and he certainly wouldn't have gotten caught. Whoever he was, he must have figured he had to get rid of them. They knew too much, or he thought they did. However, getting close to the laundry list of people before they figured out who he was would be a challenge. "He hired someone, didn't he? To dispose of us."

"There you go," he laughed, "working when you're supposed to be relaxing. Are you certain that you and Dave aren't actually related?" She rolled her eyes at him, a gesture he mirrored right back at her. "To answer your question, no, he isn't the killer. But he may have some answers-"

"Then get me out of here and to the interrogation room!" She demanded. This was too good to pass up. She would squeeze the information out of the stupid son of a bitch.

"You're stuck here," he sighed, "at least for the time being. I'm sure the doctor will come in and tell you exactly what's going on, but from what I've gathered, that shoulder of yours is fairly messed up."

Of course. Gunshot wounds were a sure shot to light duty.

"Well how about that?" She muttered, "Looks like disaster just follows us, doesn't it?"

"It certainly makes dating you interesting," he quipped.

God, she just wanted to cry, and not because of the pain. Why the hell was this guy sticking around now? Did he have some strange death wish? Was he one of those idiots who enjoyed courting danger? "Don't you take all this as some cosmic sign that you should run away from me as fast as you can?"

"I never put much stock in signs," he stated, "which is why I'm constantly missing exits on the freeway." When she laughed, he counted that as a win.

"Hey," David appeared in the doorway, "I thought I heard talking down here. Glad to see you're awake. How are you feeling?"

"Like shit." there was no other way to describe it. Her head hurt, her shoulder ached, and she felt completely helpless. "What happened? The last thing I remember was hitting the floor."

it was a defense mechanism, she was certain. Never having a high tolerance to pain, Emma found it easier to just disconnect.

Vaguely, she recalled the sound of the bullets ripping through her windows and walls, she wasn't getting her deposit back now, and screaming. The screaming sounded far away though. Just as Killian's voice was distant when she started coming to. Like it wasn't happening to her at all.

The he aftermath however, was very apparent. She was going to be quite aware of every move her shoulder made for a long time.

"Why don't we worry about something else?" David asked, "There's a couple people who have been patiently waiting for the past few hours, just to see you."

"I feel important," she smirked.

"Can we come in now?" Henry asked, sounding as if he hadn't a shred of patience left.

"Chill out, little man," Ruby's voice sounded as Henry appeared in the doorway. Adelaide was right on his heels, with Ruby following both of them.

Emma's eyes lit up immediately, something that didn't go unnoticed by the others in the room. David quickly grabbed Henry, and set him on the bed, making sure to put him on Emma's good side. "Be careful," David instructed.

Adelaide put her hands on her hips, annoyed that she was being left out. "Me too!" she demanded.

"Let her up," Emma laughed, "There's room." David set the little girl next to Henry, giving her the same warning to be careful.

"Not too long," Killian said, "the nurse is going to have a fit if she catches us, and she told me she'd be back in a few minutes."

The children didn't bother worrying about nurses, instead, they just started chattering away, telling Emma all about their adventures in the waiting room. They were so energetic, adorable and happy to see _her. _She wanted nothing more than to just scoop them into her arms and hug them until they complained about being squished. Unfortunately, her one arm seemed to _really _hate moving right now.

"Have you two been keeping David and Ruby on their toes?" She laughed.

"Yeah," Ruby laughed, "Your kids are the cutest damn things I've ever seen, but they're handfuls. Thanks for the free birth control."

"What's that mean, daddy?" Adelaide asked.

"It means I'll tell you when you're older," Killian sighed. Both of the kids made a face at that.

"They never tell me anything either," Henry whispered to Adelaide.

"I'm sorry," a woman appeared in the doorway, "was there an invite I didn't get? I'm pretty sure this hospital has a 'no party' policy." The smile on her face told a different story though. She found the gathering amusing.

"Is that the nurse that's gonna have a fit?" Henry asked.

The woman looked over at Killian, "telling stories about me Mister Jones?"

Killian smirked, "Just didn't want them overwhelming Emma. Didn't realize they'd repeat my tall tales. Want us to move them?"

"They're fine," the nurse said as she came into the room and started checking everything over, "good to see someone's decided to wake up. I'll send the doctor in as soon as he's available."

"My mommy got shot," Henry informed the nurse. Emma groaned, knowing that he'd probably told everyone who crossed his path the tale. The nurse however, didn't seem to mind listening to the little boy as he went on about their hectic morning. Just as Emma was trying to get him to stop talking, the other woman assured her it was just fine. Occasionally, she'd pipe in with a remark, just to let him know that she was paying attention.

Emma found herself starting to pay more attention as he got into what happened after the bullets peppered her home. Henry jumbled things together at times, in a way that only a five year old could, sometimes, being corrected by Adelaide, who would interrupt, throw in her two cents and jumble the story even more.

"My daddy made her not bleed," Adelaide informed the nurse.

"Cuz my mom says blood stains carpet," Henry stated.

Emma laughed at that one. Last time they had a run in with blood, Henry had stubbed his toe, then proceeded to run around the apartment, leaving a trail behind him. With her wounds though, stains were the least of her problems. But she wasn't going to tell the kids that.

"Then," Henry continued, "David came! Friends from his work too!"

"Yeah!" Adelaide exclaimed, "And some man in a..." she wrinkled her nose, trying to form the word, "boolance! He took Emma."

"That's what they use to take people to the hospital," the nurse informed her.

"It was loud," Henry said, "and David took us and then we waited here for my momma to get better. What did you do to make her better? Did she need a big band aid?"

"She _did_," the nurse said, "and she'll even get a lollipop for being such a good patient."

"Do I get one too?" Adelaide asked.

"I think storytellers get something a little better than that," the nurse said as she finished up, "wait here." She disappeared for a few minutes, returning with two Popsicles. The kids seemed thrilled with the treat, thanking her before they ripped into them.

"I think," David sighed, noticeably exhausted, "it's time for two kids to keep their end of the bargain and come with us. Elliot's on his way back and he'll insist we come with him this time." Oh great. Elliot. As if this day couldn't get _any _worse.

At this point, the doctor made his way in, so Killian and David collected the kids, now complete messes, and went with Ruby into the waiting room. There were a few agents waiting there, keeping an eye on everything. Two continuously kept watch on the hall and Emma's room, making Killian feel much better about leaving her there. "They'll stay, right?" he asked, "they won't leave until she's with us?"

"I think you should hang out here," David said, "they'll stay, but they're not going to be very good company."

"Look, mate," he frowned, "I appreciate you watching Addy for the past half hour or so, but I can't have her going without me. Especially since we don't know how long Emma's going to be stuck here."

"I'll stay," Ruby volunteered, "I don't have any kids to worry about."

David nodded, "Just call us when they release her. Tell her Henry's fine, and that I've already called Neal. Don't let her worry too much about anything."

"Keep her from trying to work the case while you're at it," Killian added, "she damn near jumped out of bed so she could go interrogate."

"Got it," Ruby nodded.


	12. Shut Down

The safe house small, but Mary Margaret didn't want to be separated from everyone. There was a small living area and two small bedrooms, each with three beds. Henry and Adelaide had finally spent the last of their energy and crashed hard, limbs every which way on one of the beds, tangled in blankets. Grace sat between them, reading a book and every so often pushing a rogue hand or foot out of her face. David, Jefferson, Killian and Mary Margaret sat on the couch, not really doing much of anything. Occasionally, James would cry and Mary Margaret would get up and feed him, change his diaper or just rock him. Two agents sat in the living area as well, just as a precaution. They didn't say much of anything, everyone in the room had already been questioned. Mostly, they kept occupied with keeping watch, making sure everyone stayed safe.

"I can't stop wondering what would have happened if I'd just dropped them off and gone home," Killian said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. They had hit his place first. He would have had no warning, no time to get to Adelaide. One or both of them could be in a body bag right now, but they weren't. Emma however, _was_ stuck in the hospital, damn lucky she only got hit twice.

"You can't think like that, man," Jefferson said.

"I shouldn't even be here," Killian said quietly. Giving in to the children's pleading had saved his life. Maybe it had even saved Emma's. Once the gunfire had stopped, he realized she'd been hit. The kids were screaming and crying, and had it just been her and Henry, she likely would have bled to death before help arrived. Somehow, he had managed to calm them down and keep from losing her. It was still a blur and he wasn't exactly sure how he managed it.

"What do you mean by that?" Jefferson asked.

"Nothing," he said. David knew Killian had spent the night, and he obviously knew something was up when Emma wasn't the one to answer her phone. Yet, he didn't say anything. As over protective as the man was the week before when he even _thought_ something might be amiss, it was odd how he didn't say anything when he _knew_ that something was going on. Not that it was any of his business, but Killian knew firsthand how protective David could be. He cared about the people he brought into his family and went straight into big brother mode the second he thought someone was on the path to getting hurt.

Problem was, Killian couldn't figure out which one of them was the one on that path.

Dammit, he liked her, _cared_ about her, and was definitely falling in love with her. Common sense said he couldn't be there already, it was too soon. But he couldn't help it. He felt _something_, and it was a hell of a lot stronger than _like_. He thought she felt it too, but this morning, she was so quick to tell him to take off. Still, it didn't seem like she wanted him to run away, more like she expected it. Was she going to shut him out just because she thought he might one day leave her?

Just the thought of losing her made his heart clench.

Unable to take the tension he was feeling any more, he stood up and went into the empty bedroom. The unease was still there, but at least there weren't people surrounding him. He loved his friends, but didn't need their sympathy right now. He sat down on one of the beds and stared at the wall, trying his best not to think of anything.

David joined him a few minutes later, sitting on another bed, opposite of Killian. "She's been through hell," he said, "and I don't mean just today."

Of course she had. She may not have told him all the little details of her life, and she might never tell him, but he could see it in her eyes. They way she doubted herself, her worth. It wasn't fair that she couldn't see how amazing she was. He understood that though, because he'd been through hell too. Maybe a different kind of hell, but hell, all the same. "I'm not trying to make it worse for her, mate."

"I didnt mean it like that," David said, "I just meant that she doesn't open up to people all that often. She's had a pretty rough time in life."

Killian nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. Ever since that first night, he realized she had been abandoned all too often in life. She never outright said why talking about her parents made her upset, but he could tell they were the first to let her down. Then there was that damned ex of hers. Whatever happened between them was a mystery to him, but the way she seemed so unsure about everyone else who walked into her life was telling. "Look," he sighed, "you knew me at my worst, and I know that's why you probably think I'm no good for her. But I'm not that man anymore, Dave."

"I know you're not," David said, "and maybe at first, I was skeptical, but you've gotta remember, I missed out on a lot. The last time I saw you-"

"I was still a bloody train wreck," Killian finished the statement.

"I was going to say, you'd just gotten married," David laughed. "So, when I first saw you, I was a little shocked to see you hitting on my friend. You disappeared on us and I had no clue how to get in touch with you. I knew Milah had gotten sick, but that was the last I heard. I always just assumed she'd gotten better."

"Rob and Jefferson didn't know either," Killian admitted, "They knew she was pregnant, knew she got sick, and then I disappeared. I was hurt and angry. The last thing I wanted was sympathy. I just wanted to take care of my wife."

"You don't have to explain yourself," David said, "I may not completely understand, but I get it. You always needed space when you were dealing with things."

"My relationship with Milah was never easy," Killian said, "you know that." It was only fair for him to explain himself to someone he considered a brother. "We were off an on for so long. I loved her, despite the difficulties."

"She was a good woman," David said, "you two may have had your rough patches, but I never doubted that you loved each other."

"She was pregnant," he admitted, "when we got married." It was the first time he had told anyone. She wasn't far along, not even showing. They had eloped and made it sound like it was just some romantic gesture. It didn't change how he felt, and he never regretted getting married, but he also knew that neither of them were ready for that. "I wanted to take care of her and our child. I didn't want to have some ridiculous off and on relationship, passing a baby around for visitation. It wasn't easy, but we made it work. We were happy." He covered his face with his hands, knowing that now that he'd started explaining, he had to finish. He looked back up at David and sighed, "then she almost lost the baby and she started getting really sick. We spent a lot of time in the hospital. She started getting better, but still wound up going into labor early. There were a million complications and I almost lost both of them. Milah didn't make it and Addy was in the NICU for almost a month."

"Jesus, Killian," David didn't know what to say.

"Regina helped out a lot. For some reason, it was easier to accept it, because she'd lost Milah too. We understood each other and actually became pretty good friends. She convinced me to stop shutting everyone out," he laughed, remembering that first day he'd gone to see Robin and Jefferson. "Addy was three months old by that time."

"So that's how Robin and Regina met," David smirked.

"Oh," Killian grinned, "that was a whirlwind romance of epic proportions. One minute, he's asking me if I could put in a good word for him, the next, it seems, he was proposing."

"And then, you all showed up here," David smiled, "I'm glad you came around. I missed you."

"We all promised long ago we'd end up in the same place," he said, "at times, I really didn't want to keep that promise, but now I'm glad I did. I've got a year left, and I'm getting out. Robin and Jefferson too. It's time to settle down and give these kids of ours a place to call home, and it's only fitting that they all grow up together, right?"

"I think it's perfect," David agreed.

"She's shutting me out," Killian said, bringing the subject back to his current worries

"Emma?"

"Emma."

"It's what she does," David sighed, "especially when it all goes to hell. She expects everyone to let her down."

Right. The "have low expectations and the disappointment won't be as bad" mentality. "I'm not goin anywhere," Killian stated, "I just don't know how to get her to see that."

"Just be patient," David said, "she'll see it eventually."


	13. Shut Down Two

Emma was silent after she answered all of the questions the agents had for her. Ruby came in to keep her company and tried to get her to talk, but Emma didn't want to make small talk and that's all Ruby was giving her. She appreciated the gesture, but there was too much swirling through her mind and she couldn't bring herself to focus on whatever her friend was saying.

Finally, Ruby stopped talking and just held Emma's hand. She liked that much better.

It was late in the afternoon when they released her, and Ruby stuck by her. When the van came to pick them up, they both sat on the bench seat in the middle. Emma had a huge lump in her throat, and the determination to keep from crying was making her sick to her stomach.

"Hey," Ruby said softly as she gently placed an arm around Emma, staying clear of her injury. The blonde leaned on her friend, grateful for the comfort. "Everything will be okay. Plus, there's this really hot guy waiting for you. I hear he's pretty happy that you're coming home sooner rather than later."

That was when it all boiled over. Tears fell freely, and heavy sobs made her a million times more aware of all her aches and pains.

"Oh my god! Emma!" Ruby pulled her into a hug.

"Sorry," Emma's broken voice managed to choke out.

"Don't be sorry," Ruby said, "you need to cry it out."

God, Emma hated crying. Especially in front of people. "I don't understand him. Disaster follows us, and this last time, he could've gotten himself killed," she finally mumbled against Ruby's shoulder. "Why isn't he running for the hills?"

"Because he's crazy about you!" Ruby exclaimed, "God, Emma, you're the only one who doesn't see it."

Emma pulled away and refused to make eye contact. The problem was, she _did _see it, and it scared the shit out of her, because she was crazy about him too. "Maybe he's just crazy. I'm not worth all this insanity."

"You're crazy if you really believe that," Ruby scolded her. "Don't you dare dump this guy just because you're scared." When Emma didn't respond, Ruby continued, "He cares about you. A lot. Henry too."

"I really don't want to talk about it, Ruby," Emma muttered.

"I don't care. You brought it up," Ruby stated. "You've got to stop this self-sabotage. Killian makes you happy."

"What makes you think that?" Emma asked. He did make her happy, but denying it was easier than talking about it.

"I'm observant," Ruby grinned, "you think I haven't noticed? David's noticed too."

"Doesn't mean anything," she said, "I was happy with Neal at one point. He still left."

It was more than that, really. She gave up _everything _for Neal. Before he waltzed into her life, she was doing just fine, making ends meet with a couple roommates in New York. Then, that stupid sailor won her over with pretty words and fantastic promises. He was stationed in Norfolk, but spent plenty of time with his buddies, coming up to Manhattan over long weekends. Eventually, they were alternating visits and seeing each other so often that he asked her to just move down to Norfolk.

That should have been the red flag right there. He wanted her to pack up and move, but not marry him. Granted, their relationship consisted of mostly weekend visits and had only been going on about six months, but, she was young, stupid and in love.

It wasn't until after she moved, after she made a life for herself in Virginia and _after _Neal decided he really didn't want to be with her after all, that she found out she was pregnant.

"Not every guy is Neal, and from what I've seen? Killian is ten times the man Neal will ever be." The van pulled up to the small building, "Now come on, I know Henry misses you." She led Emma out of the car and the two followed the agent into the house.

Emma had been to several of their safe houses, though never on the victim's side. She was always the protector, the one convincing people they would be okay. Now, this place would be her home until they found their killer, because there was a price on everyone's head, because she'd failed the first time.

Everyone looked up when the women entered the living area. Henry ran over to Emma and wrapped his arms around her legs, "Momma!"

"Hey kid," she said as she ruffled Henry's hair. She hated the fact that everyone was looking at her. Her eyes were probably red, her face probably blotchy and dammit, she'd been in a hospital bed almost all day. She was a mess and everyone was looking at her. "I'm gonna go lie down," she said, "Would someone care to tell me which beds have been claimed?" Escape was the priority at this point.

"We've got the kids in the room on the right," Mary Margaret said, "Doesn't matter which bed, they'll just work around you when it's bedtime."

The kids room was a good place for her, because she'd be damned if Henry slept somewhere other than with her tonight.

"You all better, Emma?" Adelaide asked.

"Just tired," she answered.

"We gots Cheetos," the little girl said, offering her the bag.

"Maybe later, sweetheart," Emma smiled at her, "I'm going to go get some sleep, okay?"

"Okay."

"Can I still play?" Henry frowned, "it's still light out. I slept earlier, I promise."

"Go ahead," she laughed. The boy let go of Emma and went back to the little table where David, Jefferson, Killian and the three kids were playing a game of cards. She felt Killian's eyes on her, but he didn't say anything, and she didn't dare look at him. The last thing she needed was to completely break down again.

Killian had stayed quiet during the exchange, noticing that she wouldn't look at him. She said her hellos, and then disappeared into the bedroom. Henry sat back down at the table and picked up his cards, ready to play again, but Killian couldn't concentrate on the game anymore.

"Hey," David said, "why don't you go talk to her?"

"She obviously doesn't have anything to say to me," Killian stated.

"Maybe she just doesn't want an audience," Ruby suggested, "I mean, everyone _was _staring at her."

"Are you gonna kiss her again, daddy?" Adelaide giggled.

"Gross," Henry made a face.

"Excuse me?" Killian asked. He'd been pretty damn sure he was careful about stealing kisses. Apparently, he wasn't a very good thief.

"Like at the party," she seemed to be very much enjoying her father's discomfort, "When David left."

Oh shit. "You saw that?" Sneaky little booger.

"Will you just go talk to her?" Ruby groaned.

"But no kissing!" Henry warned, "That's gross."

Killian was almost certain his face was red. His baby girl had just announced to everyone that he wasn't as sneaky as he thought he was. As he went into the bedroom, he heard a couple laughs, and then the chatter began again.

The room was fairly dark and Emma had chosen the bed on the far wall, lying on her stomach, her face covered by a curtain of hair. He wasn't sure how that was comfortable, but she seemed cozy.

Quietly, he sat down on the bed and brushed her hair out of her face, surprised when she opened her eyes and looked up at him. "Hey," she whispered.

"Hey," he smiled at her, knowing that even though the room was dark, there was still enough light from the outside for her to see him. She smiled back, and then it got quiet again. Dammit, _he _was the one who came in here, of course she was going to expect him to say something. Too bad he didn't really think about what he was going to say.

"You're still here," she finally said when he didn't speak.

There it was, the girl who wanted to bolt. Somewhere in there was the woman he'd met, the one who was falling for him. "I said I wasn't going anywhere." He didn't want to argue with her about it. If she wanted space, he'd give her that, but he wasn't about to give up on her until she told him to get out of her life.

Emma didn't say anything for a moment, as if she was contemplating what he meant by his words. Slowly, she shifted, rolling onto her good side. Killian took it as a silent way of telling him she wanted him to stay. Deciding he wanted nothing more than to just hold her, he got on his back and gently pulled her close to him. To his relief, she didn't protest. She cuddled up to him and rested her head on his chest. He held her, careful of her injured shoulder, and drew lazy circles on her back. "Your son says I'm not allowed to kiss you," he said.

She started laughing quietly, "I heard Adelaide rat you out."

"She's too smart for her own damn good," he chuckled.

They were quiet again, and for a moment, he thought that maybe she'd dozed off. It didn't matter, she was here, in his arms and that was enough right now. "Please don't shut me out," he whispered, his voice broken.

"I'm not good at this," she said.

She was awake after all. "I don't care," he said, "I'm not either, but I know I want to try."

"With me?" she asked.

"Who else, love?" he kissed the top of her head. Well, what Henry didn't know, wouldn't hurt him.

"There are a million better choices out there," she told him, "What could you possibly see in me?"

_Everything, _he wanted to say, but it was too much, far too soon. He couldn't tell her that, because it would scare her off even faster than the idea of him leaving. Besides, it wasn't what she needed to hear right now. "You're bloody amazing, Swan," he said, "and you don't give yourself enough credit. If anything, I should be asking what you see in _me, _because when it all comes down to it, I'm the lucky one."

She let out a light laugh, as if she didn't believe him. "I was found on the side of the road, near a diner. My parents didn't even want me." _So, why would you? _Were the words she didn't say.

Suddenly, he wanted to beat the shit out of everyone who had a hand in breaking her.

"I was bounced around from home to home," she continued, "always the temporary kid. No one wanted me to be a permanent part of their family. Day in and day out, kids were getting adopted and no one gave me a second glance. The homes I stayed in, the people who were supposed to care for me? Most of them made it perfectly clear that I was just a paycheck."

Killian held her a little tighter, because he completely understood the feeling of not being wanted. "I hold many of those same memories, love," he told her.

"You do?" She asked in disbelief.

He hadn't talked about it in years. Robin was the only one who truly knew everything, seeing as it was his family who had saved him in the first place. Maybe letting her know he had similar beginnings would help her see that it didn't have to define her. "My father walked out before I was born," he explained, "and my mother seemed to resent my very existence. My brother was my protector, he was several years older than me and made it a point to look after me. But after my mother passed, we were separated and lost in the system. I was five at the time."

"I ran away," she said, "a lot. I figured no one cared, and they really didn't. Still, social services would find me and put me in yet another home. Did you ever look for your brother?"

"I've never really stopped," he said, "but I haven't got much to go on. I was so young. I ran away quite a bit too. I won't lie, I was lucky. At fifteen, I found my way into the Locksley's home. They were different, warm and accepting, when every other home had lacked those very qualities."

"They adopted you," Emma guessed.

It wasn't unheard of, teenagers did manage to find homes from time to time, but it was so rare that by the time most orphans hit thirteen, they'd long since lost hope.

"Aye," was all he said in response.

"It still hurts though," she said, "doesn't it? The constant rejection and the simple fact that the people who should have loved you were the ones who abandoned you."

"Very much," he agreed. She was absolutely right, it still hurt. Even though he'd found a family that cared about him, the rejection of the family he'd been born into was an ache that would never completely go away. "But just because we had less than stellar beginnings doesn't mean we don't deserve happiness now."

"You make me happy," she said softly, "and that scares me."

He wasn't sure how to handle a confession like that. "I make you happy?" He asked.

"Yeah," she answered.

"Why does that scare you?" He felt her tense up and she hesitated, "you don't have to answer, I'll understand."

"Being happy never really seems to work out for me," she finally said, "I always get left with a broken heart in the end."

"It's easier to push people away."

"You can't get hurt if you don't let them in," she said. "Problem is, I forgot to keep my guard up when I met you."

_God_, he thought, _please don't shut me out. _"Look, Emma, I want very much to be a part of your life. I can't promise perfection. I'll likely do stupid things and screw up quite a bit. But I can promise that I will not abandon you."

"No one's ever promised me that before," her voice wavered, and it sounded as if she were about to cry.

"Take a chance on me, Emma," he pleaded, "because you make me happy too."


	14. Good Nights and Sleepy Mornings

_Because you make me happy too..._

The words echoed in her mind and Emma could do little to stop the tears that started falling. In all her years, she'd heard many promises and had been told countless things, but no one had ever told her what Killian Jones just told her.

She made him happy.

Maybe he was right. Maybe she _did _deserve happiness. Maybe Killian really _was _as genuine as he seemed. She was pretty good at spotting liars, and nothing he'd told her so far was a lie.

"Swan?" he sounded worried. She felt his hand on her head, fingers tangling in her hair. He was kissing the top of her head again, as if somehow, that would get her to calm down.

"There's still the problem with disaster following us," she said. She'd never forgive herself if something happened to him. She could have lost everyone today and that particular fear still gripped her like a vice.

"It can't follow us forever, besides, we've had more good things happen than bad."

Emma knew he was right. Even with the disasters, they managed to enjoy themselves. If she was going to take a real chance on anyone, it would have to be someone who she really liked. And she _really _liked this guy. "We _do _always seem to have a good time," she mused, "Even when we're getting our asses kicked by your traitor of a daughter."

"I do believe I'll have to ground her for that offense," he chuckled.

"Be patient?" It was a ridiculous question, he'd already been plenty accommodating. If he didn't take off after an assassination attempt, he likely wouldn't cower away when the going got tough in a more normal way.

"Of course." It was another promise. He was giving her so much, and expecting so little in return.

"I can't promise I won't freak out from time to time," she whispered. Taking a chance meant letting him in, completely. It was a terrifying thought, but he was willing to be patient, and willing to let her in as well. "But I can promise I won't completely shut down." It would be hard, but she could give him that much, and she could tell he would give her space if she needed it. Right now though, space was the last thing she wanted. She wanted him, and she wanted him close. Just as he was at this moment.

Tomorrow would be the day to worry about everything else. Questions about where she was going to live (she wouldn't feel safe in that apartment ever again), what she was going to tell Neal (who, according to David, had freaked out), and what she was going to do about Killian jones (though, she was pretty sure that answer was clear. She would continue to fall for him. And she was surprisingly okay with that).

Emma woke the next morning to the smell of breakfast. Her stomach grumbled and she realized she'd eaten next to nothing the day prior. The next thing she noticed, was how much her shoulder ached. Despite the pain though, she felt content, still wrapped up in Killian. God, had she actually slept through the night?

Suddenly, there was movement, and Emma looked up to see Killian, still half asleep, trying to bat a foot out of his face. There was a giggle from Adelaide, and a groan from Killian as he finally came to. "Addy!"

Another giggle sounded from behind her, and she realized why she had no room. Henry was stealing what little space she had on her side of the bed. "When did you get here?"

"Bedtime," Henry said, as if it was obvious.

"Out of all the beds, you chose the one that's already occupied?" Killian asked. More giggles.

"Someone needs to move so I can get up," Emma stated. It was a tangle of limbs that kept her stuck. Henry, keeping her squished, Killian with her in his arms, and Adelaide, kicking anyone in her way. After a brief struggle, they all managed to untangle and sit up. Jefferson and Grace seemed to have taken full advantage of the situation, each sprawled across their own bed.

"Why don't you kids wake those two up?" Killian suggested.

_As if they needed the suggestion. _

"Mean," Emma whispered to Killian as the kids hopped over to their sleeping victims.

Killian laughed and put his arm around her waist and leaned close to her, "how's your shoulder, sweetheart?"

"Hurts," she said, "head too." Her whole damn body ached, especially now that she was attempting to move.

"Where did you drop your meds?" He asked.

"Ruby took them," she answered.

"Ugh!" Jefferson groaned, unable to ignore the kids jumping on the bed any longer. Once they were satisfied he was awake, they went to Grace's bed and started their reign of terror again.

"Why don't you rest some more?" Killian said, "I'll get them, and a bit of that breakfast I'm smelling." He kissed her cheek before getting off the bed and leaving the room.

"You guys!" Grace complained.

"I think someone brought in breakfast," Emma told the sleepyheads. Satisfied with their good work, Henry and Adelaide scrambled back onto the bed with Emma. Jefferson rolled his eyes as he got out of bed and he and Grace left the room.

"Good job you two," Emma laughed.

Killian came back, food and drugs in hand, followed by David, who was carrying drinks.

That only meant that they were about to tell Emma something she wouldn't like. Killian sat next to her and handed her the medicine before he opened the food bag. "It looks like egg mcmuffins," he made a face, "but I suppose beggars can't be choosers, right?"

The kids didn't care, it was junk food, and they weren't being told "no". They happily ripped into their breakfast as David sat down on the bed.

"Just tell me," Emma said as he handed her a soda. No use dancing around it, might as well hear the bad news.

"Ruby and I are going in," David said, "we got some leads from the shooter-"

"I'll get ready then," she interrupted.

"No," David said, "you're injured and about to put more pain killers into your system. You need rest."

"David-"

"Ruby and I can handle it," David said, "so no arguing. Stay here, get rest. If you can't sleep, enjoy spending time with Henry."

"Low blow," she grinned, "like I'd ever turn down extra time with the kid."

"I managed to calm Neal down a bit too," He told her, "I got him to agree to back off for now. At least until this all blows over."

"Thanks," Emma said. She didn't want to deal with him right now. Not while they were still possibly in danger. She knew there was also a chance that Neal might try and use this situation to get more custody rights. That would be another uphill battle.

"We can swing by your apartment," David said, "Ruby can grab some more stuff for you and Henry, but to be perfectly honest, I don't think we'll be here much longer."

"It's fine, David. Thank you though." They had the essentials. David had grabbed her overnight bag while she was on her way to the hospital. After breakfast, she decided, she was going to take a nice, long shower.

"Okay," he nodded, "and just so you know, we still have that spare room. You and Henry are staying with us after this."

"What?" She did _not_ take charity.

"I know neither of you will want to stay in that apartment again, so you're staying with us until you find a new place. Don't argue either, you would do the same for us if the situation called for it."

Well, he wasn't wrong about that.

"Come on Nolan!" Ruby shouted.

"I'll keep you in the loop," he promised.

"Thank you," she smiled as David gave her a quick hug before he left.

"Go fish!" Adelaide shouted, startling Emma, who was in a drug induced sleep. Everyone looked over to see if she'd actually wake up, but she didn't.

"Shhh!" Henry scolded, "Mom is sleeping!"

"You aren't being much quieter, lad," Killian informed him.

"It isn't really fair that you guys let her crash right there," Mary Margaret said, even though she knew that Emma had insisted on playing cards with the kids. Her head was on the table, and her cards were fanned out, face up in front of her.

"She wanted to play," Killian looked at his sleeping Swan and laughed. "Emma? Do you have any... Why am I asking? Of course you have a two...I'll take that..."

"Wrong, wrong, wrong," Jefferson laughed, "but I need that five. Is it my turn yet?" Grace giggled and took an ace when it was her turn.

"I need a king," Henry decided this game was pretty fun as he reached over to take a card from his mom.

The door opened, signaling David and Ruby's return. They looked over at Emma, then decided it was best not to question it, or the fact that the kids were continuing to pilfer cards from her.

"We have some good news," David said, "first, our killer didn't strike this week. Second, our shooter is singing like a canary. Ruby and I spent this morning and most of this afternoon looking into everything he's told us. We've got solid leads. Sadly, Ruby, Emma and I can't really be out and about at the moment, so we can't do much of the physical legwork."

"Still," Killian said, "it's excellent news."

"We've got more, but maybe after the kids go to sleep." Ruby said.

"Speaking of sleep," David laughed as he pointed at Emma, "Can someone get that poor girl back to bed?"

"She insisted on playing," Jefferson stated.

"She's passed out!" Ruby exclaimed.

Killian put his cards down (they were subsequently stolen by the kids), and placed a hand on Emma's good shoulder, "Emma?"

"Hmm?" She barely muttered, eyes still shut.

"How about you go lie down?"

"Playing cards," she mumbled, unaware that the card game had stopped for her about twenty minutes ago.

"I bet we can get her to say some funny stuff," Jefferson said, ""come one Killian, get her talking."

Killian rolled his eyes, "card theft is one thing, mate, let's not get carried away."

"It's all in good fun," Jefferson continued to try and egg him on.

"Swan," Killian started to shake her gently, "come on. Card game's over, you won."

"Yeah?"

There were a couple giggles as the kids continued to play. "Yeah," he grinned, "Took us to the bloody cleaners."

"Don't wanna move," she complained.

"Come on, love," he tried to get more than just a mumbled response from her. When she didn't say anything, he shook her again, "wake up, just long enough to get to a decent bed."

Emma's eyes fluttered open, and she slowly lifted her head as she sat upright. Jefferson started laughing when he noticed a card stuck to her cheek. She scowled, the movement causing the card to fall, sending Jefferson into a roaring fit of laughter.

Killian stood up, and helped Emma to her feet. She leaned heavily on him for support, as if her own body was made of lead. After crossing a short distance, she looked at the couch and stumbled towards it, plopping down with a "here's good".

"I'll go grab a blanket," Ruby said as she watched Emma curl up on the couch.

"Next time I injure myself, I'll be sure to ask for whatever they gave her," Jefferson decided. This earned him several dirty looks from the adults in the room.


	15. Some Answers, More Questions

"I don't understand," Killian frowned, "your killer has been ridiculously neat. Why would he do something as sloppy as hiring someone to kill us in one of the most violent ways possible?"

It was late in the evening, and with the children in bed, the adults gathered to discuss the more sensitive details of their dilemma. David sighed, "it doesn't make sense. But, really, the only thing we have to go on is the shooter's word. The driver shot himself." He usually wouldn't be discussing the case outside of work, and especially not with those outside the agency, but this was different. This guy had tried to hurt his family and now they had the ammo they needed to try and bring him down. It was only fair that he share that information with his brothers. They were cops anyway, they knew the drill.

Mary Margaret however, excused herself. She knew her husband's job could get dangerous, but she didn't really want to hear the details. Especially now that it hit so close to home.

"So," Emma joined in, "they sent someone to take care of Graham, but you can't shoot up a hospital, so they tried to poison him again?" She was still fuzzy on that, having been just about out of it for the past couple days. "Why didn't they just try to poison us?"

"There's too many of us," Killian supplied the only answer he could think of, "the killer realized Humbert made it."

"So we're sure it's a hired hit?" Emma asked.

"We know it is," David said, "like Killian said, there's too many of us. Tracking us down and poisoning is would take too long. Besides our group here, there's also the rotation of guards that have been at the hospital all week. Basically, anyone who may have talked to the victim was a risk to the killer, who didn't know what Graham may or may not have remembered. Besides Killian and Emma's places and Ruby's car, someone tried to get at a couple of sailors in the barracks."

"They probably would have done more damage," Ruby stated, "but, because the cops are the very guys Killian and Jefferson work with, they were able to find Robin pretty fast. With everyone tipped off, they knew they wouldn't be able to get any further. I guess the driver figured he'd rather be dead than report back as a failure. That actually helped them catch the shooter, who's admitted to everything from the explosions, to the shootings and all the things they didn't get to do. He's not a very good hit man."

"He's medical," Emma blurted out.

"Come again?" Jefferson asked.

"Our killer," Emma said, "he has to be."

"It just so happens," Ruby grinned, "That _very_ thought crossed our minds."

"Why didn't we see it before?" Emma asked.

"We were looking for connections," David explained, "Remember? But none of them seemed to cross paths. Ever. No love triangles, gambling issues, drug problems...nothing."

"They were all so clean cut, it didn't make sense that they would be targets," Ruby stated, "Except when we started digging a little deeper."

"We already dug pretty deep," Emma frowned, "I mean, we were grasping at straws with some of the reaches we were making."

David nodded, remembering all too well how crazy the past month had been. "Here's the thing," he said, "we were absolutely right. These guys are good guys, with absolutely no issues, personal or financial. They've never known each other and it looked like they had no one in common."

"They didn't," Emma rolled her eyes. How many times were they going to go over this?

"They did," David grinned.

Okay, now, she was completely confused. They'd talked to every damn person each victim had known and found nothing.

"Humbert told you about his girlfriend," David looked right at Emma. ""Right?"

"She's in California," she reminded him, "and I'm pretty sure he said she was an ex."

"Turns out, Graham was just one, in a long line of affairs," David stated.

"I may not know the man all too well, but I'm fairly certain he has more morals than that." Killian frowned, hoping there was a reasonable explanation. Sure, affairs happened all the time, but they were never worth it, and military-wise, they could offer serious consequences.

"I'm pretty sure he didn't know," David assured him, "he seemed shocked when we told him. She, however, seems to have gotten around quite a bit."

David and Ruby told their friends all about the mystery woman. It seemed that after they found out her name, Tamara, they found out she had seen each sailor that had become a victim. "It'll be a couple days, but they'll be hauling her butt in for questioning," Ruby stated, "before we left headquarters, they were putting together a team to track down her husband, who has been missing shifts at the hospital over the past couple of days."

"Lance is going through and checking out the locations of the murders," David added, "now that we have a the lead, we might be able to get more information."

"So, our suspect," Emma interrupted, "you said he was medical, what is he? Doctor? Nurse? Is he even Navy?"

"He's Navy," David confirmed, "a medic who works the nights at the hospital. which explains the odd hours we found our victims."

Greg Mendell was the name of the medic who was married to Tamara. Currently, he was AWOL, seeing as he'd stopped showing up to work, meaning, he likely wouldn't be hanging around. No, if he was smart enough to get away with three murders, he was smart enough to skip town. "Is the wife in on it?" Killian asked.

"No clue," Ruby sighed, "It _looks_ like a sick man with jealousy issues, but until we get at least one of them in for questioning, there's really no telling. But we're sure on one thing, Mendell is our guy. He has access to medical equipment, obviously has a pretty good knowledge of what will kill a person, and he's either _really_ good at keeping tabs on his wife, or they have some sick, twisted romance going on."

"Humbert said she left a couple months ago," Emma reminded them, "so, I'm leaning more towards the jealousy thing. Maybe she was afraid of him and skipped town. Maybe she refused to come back, and going after her lovers was his way of what, coping? Revege?"

"We'll figure it out," David assured them all, "until then, just know that we're safe here, and as soon as we nab this guy, we'll be going home."

"Dammit," Jefferson practically jumped out of his chair when his phone started ringing.

"Who the hell is trying to get in touch with you at this hour?" Killian asked.

"Nobody," Jefferson frowned, selecting the ignore option. "Don't worry about it."

"Who's Elsa?" Ruby teased, reading the alert on his phone. Of course, she knew exactly who Elsa was, seeing as she witnessed the interrogation. She just wanted to poke some fun at the guy.

"Do I ask you who Victor is?" Jefferson snapped. "Just because I choose _not_ to yammer on the phone all day, doesn't give you the right to be nosy."

"Wow," Ruby looked at David, "You forgot to mention that your friend was on his period this week."

"Wait a minute," Killian jumped back into the conversation, "Who _is_ Elsa? Obviously, she's not a nobody if you got all defensive about her."

"I don't really feel like talking about it, Jones," Jefferson stated.

"Alright," David sighed, "It's getting late and apparently, tempers are short. Why don't we just agree to drop everything and get some rest?" He and Emma also knew who Elsa was, but were true to their word about keeping quiet about it. Still, David figured he'd have to talk to his friend, because _something_ about the girl was bothering him.

Killian however, beat him to the punch. When everyone had gotten up to go to bed, he had grabbed Jefferson's arm in an attempt to pull him off to the side.

"Okay then," David nodded, "good night." Unwilling to be witnesses if things got ugly, everyone disappeared into the rooms.

Emma walked into the kids' room and saw that each had sprawled themselves across a bed. With a quiet giggle, she went over to Henry and gently nudged him out of the way so she could lie down.

Emma wasn't sure how long Killian and Jefferson were in the living area, but she was grateful they weren't shouting. Finally, Killian walked in and she felt him kiss her cheek before crossing the room to the bed Adelaide had claimed.

"Hey," Emma whispered, noticing that it startled him, "Sorry."

"Didn't know you were awake," He said quietly, "everything alright?"

"Yeah," she said, "you?"

"I'm good."

"Where's Jefferson?" she asked, hoping he'd calmed down a bit.

"Calling his girl," Killian answered.

"I promised her I wouldn't say anything," Emma confessed. She didn't know why she suddenly felt guilty.

Killian was back to her bed in seconds, kneeling by it, so he could talk to her a little quieter. She sat up, and got off the bed, sitting down next to him. Seemingly grateful that he wouldn't have to stay in such an uncomfortable position, he turned and sat down. He wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close. "I know they're both grateful," he whispered, as if he sensed her guilt, "and there's nothing wrong with what you did. it was between you and Elsa, not you and the rest of the world."

"I just feel...I don't know, like tonight's blow up could have been prevented if I'd at least told you." Jefferson had been so...un-Jefferson-like. She'd never seen him upset, and with the way he normally acted, she didn't even realize he had a temper. Killian likely wouldn't have pried if she'd at least tipped him off.

"He's fine," Killian assured her, "just wound a little tight at the moment. There isn't much privacy here, and he's been avoiding her calls because of it."

"Why doesn't he just text her?"

"Apparently, her phone is archaic," Killian laughed, "and she's already maxed her text limit." Jesus, they still had those? "There's also the fact that this whole ordeal has really stressed him out. He didn't want her getting caught up in the mess any more than she already was. Really, love, it's okay."

"Okay," she agreed.

"Is there something else on your mind, Swan?" He asked.

The truth was, there was a lot on her mind, but after Jefferson's outburst, only one thing was at the forefront. It scared her, the idea of letting him into their lives like this, especially so soon, but she hated thinking that she was hiding him like some dirty secret. Over the past week, she'd done nothing but deny everything when David and Ruby questioned her about him. "I want to do this right," she finally said. She had no clue how to date when she had a five year old, and she was pretty sure every single parent out there would scoff at the idea that she'd introduced her son to a man she had only begun seeing. "I just don't know what right is."

"I think," Killian said, slowly, taking a moment, "that we can't let the outside world define it. We need to do what's right for us. People are going to talk about people no matter what. They'll say we're going about it the wrong way, but if it works, then why question it."

"Thanks to Adelaide, I'm pretty sure the kids are on to us," she said. They hadn't really said much of anything about it, but she was sure the subject would come up eventually. "I just...I don't want them to get hurt if things don't work out. I mean, I'm not saying they won't, but kids-"

"I know," he said, "and I agree. I never really meant to jump in like this, and I just assumed that we could downplay it for the kids for a bit. I mean, we're both friends of Dave. Even if we'd never started this, they would have met eventually."

But it was different than just meeting your mom's friends. They'd met each other, and as strange as it seemed, they'd already bonded. "I think they're both kind of attached already." The idea scared her more than just a little bit, "it's just so much more complicated with kids."

"One day at a time," he said, "we'll cross bridges as we come to them."


	16. Breakdown

"You three," Robin eyed David, Killian and Jefferson, "are no longer allowed to leave my sight. You get into far too much trouble when left to your own devices."

Emma couldn't help it, she laughed at the lecture Robin was doling out. They had stopped by his place first, because he demanded it, stating he wanted to see for himself that they were all all right. Ruby had opted to go in to the office, seeing as she didn't have any family members to worry about, and David had promised to be in tomorrow.

"Dont think you're off the hook, young lady," Robin looked over at her, "if you scare the hell out of us like that again, I'll see to it that you're grounded for life."

"Noted," she said with a grin.

"Can Henry, Gracie and Addy play?" Roland asked, obviously missing having friends at his house.

"If it's alright with their parents," Robin nodded.

The decision was unanimous, after being cooped up for a couple of days, the kids needed to run out some energy. Once the kids rushed outside, Robin insisted everyone come out to the deck and get comfortable. As everyone found a seat, Regina offered to order pizza for lunch.

Greg Mendell had been caught and brought in for questioning hours ago, but Emma was still unable to relax. Her shoulder was bugging her, and fear was still settled in the pit of her stomach, making it difficult to ease the tension. Part of her was still worried they were being watched, even though common sense told her it was over. Still, she found herself almost panicking as the kids ran around the yard, even though they were staying close to the deck.

Emma only caught bits and pieces of the conversation, due to both her fear and her painkillers. She heard Jefferson bring up Paige and Elsa, then David brought up their adventures over the past few days. By the time Killian started talking, she was starting to doze off, unable to fight her medication's side effects any longer. Someone put an arm around her, it had to be Killian, but she lost consciousness pretty quickly after that.

When she woke, she found herself on a couch, wrapped up in a blanket. When did this become her life?

"Looks like sleeping beauty decided to join us," David teased, "want us to reheat some pizza for you?"

Reheat? Had she slept the day away again?

"Emma?" Mary Margaret asked when she didn't respond.

God, it was taking her too long to form words. Now they were worrying about her. She did her best to sit up, her body protesting in earnest. "Kay," she managed to mumble as she fought against the grogginess. She looked outside and saw the sun was still high in the sky.

"Its only two," David informed her, answering her unspoken question, "Jefferson and Gracie went home, and Robin, Regina and Killian took the kids for ice cream." Before she even had a chance to freak out, David spoke again, "they're fine. Killian just let me know they're on their way back."

"Where's the baby?" Emma asked, finally finding her voice.

"Sleeping," Mary Margaret smiled, "finally. I don't know how you slept through all that fussing." She brought a slice of pizza and a glass of soda over to Emma and sat next to her. "You're lucky Killian has quick reflexes, because you almost fell right out of your seat earlier."

"Great," Emma laughed as she started to eat. A face plant on the deck would have been another trip to the ER.

"You alright?" David asked.

"Yeah," Emma said, "just not quite awake yet."

"Okay," he nodded, "so, while you were out, I made a call. You're still technically out because of your injury, but the big guy said that if you wanted to come in tomorrow, just to observe, they've got some more questioning going on. Tamara should be arriving in the afternoon, and they're still drilling Greg."

"Actually," she smiled, "I really just want to stay home with Henry. If that's okay?" She never thought she'd opt out, but at the moment, she wasn't quite ready to go back into the office.

"Yeah," David smiled back at her, "I'll fill you in when I get back then."

"Alright you little monsters," Robin's voice rang out as the front door opened, "keep the shenanigans to a minimum, Miss Emma is still sleeping." A chorus of giggles echoed as she watched them file into the kitchen, each with an ice cream cone.

Regina came in next, holding a bag, which looked like it had even more ice cream in it. Killian followed her, ice cream cone in hand, like the big kid that he was. He looked over at the couch and grinned, "so, you've decided to join us."

"And you decided to get ice cream without me," she pouted.

"One moment," he disappeared into the kitchen for a few minutes before returning with a pink dish from the ice cream shop. His ice cream was gone, however, making Emma wonder why he wasn't suffering from a major brain freeze. Mary Margaret moved out of his way, and he sat next to Emma. "Henry said mint chip was your favorite. We were expecting you to still be asleep, so we opted for a bowl. They hold up better in the freezer."

"We're planning on heading out pretty soon," David said to Emma, "No rush though. I can always come back and get you later."

"Don't go out of your way for me," she said.

"Its not a big deal," David assured her, "besides, Henry's having fun with the kids. I don't want to break that up. Just call me when you're ready. Also, we'll need to talk to your landlord and start moving you out soon-"

"I really don't want to think about that right now," she sighed, "tomorrow maybe?"

David nodded, "but I'm serious, making a second trip out here is no trouble." go

"Okay," she laughed, "Go home already." David rolled his eyes and he and Mary Margaret said their goodbyes as they gathered up James and headed out.

"I could always drive you back," Killian said.

"Because that worked out so well last time," she raised an eyebrow.

"Hardly my fault!" He smirked, "how's the ice cream?"

"Perfect," she swirled the spoon around, gathering enough for a big bite.

"I'm glad Henry decided to not lead me astray," he chuckled.

"I dont think he's at that stage yet," She set her ice cream down and cuddled up to Killian, "give him time." She heard him laugh, then saw him steal her ice cream. "Hey!"

"All's fair, Swan," he teased, "you put it down. So, are you going in with eveyone tomorrow?"

"No," she said. She couldn't explain it, because she wasn't even sure she understood it herself. She'd been in dangerous situations before, first as a patrol cop, then as an NCIS agent, but this was the first time things had crossed the line into her personal life. Things could have ended up so much worse. The thought still scared the hell out of her, even though everything had turned out alright.

This case had been a game changer for her. Both frustrating and dangerous, it made her think about things she'd never let bother her before. She was good at her job, and even with the risks, she didn't doubt she would make it home at the end of the day. Henry needed her, and she wasn't going to let some two-bit dirtbag take her away from him. Like this guy almost did.

It dawned on her that no matter how good she was, there would always be the risk. She knew that had always been the case, but now, it felt real. The bad guys out there weren't always two-bit dirtbags. Some were smart, calculating, and damn good, and there was always the chance that one day, she'd run into one who wouldn't screw up.

Emma lost it at that point, and started crying.

"Hey," Killian put the ice cream down and pulled her into a hug, "did I say something wrong? You can have the ice cream-"

She laughed at that, his teasing tone made her feel a little lighter, but she still felt like a mess. "I think I've lost my edge."

"Ah," he nodded, because he completely understood that, "first time you faced your own mortality?"

"Is _that_ what this horrible feeling is?" It was so much worse than your everday, run of the mill fear.

"You'll be fine," he assured her, "give it time. the edge will come back."

"How do you know?" She asked.

"I've been there," he said, "look." He let go of her, and she sat back so she could see whatever he was going to show her. He lifted up his shirt, and turned a little, showing her a particularly ugly scar on his side. How had she not noticed that the other day? "Right between the ribs," he explained, "I wish I could tell you it was some heroic battle scar, but it's the result of a bar fight." He put his shirt back down and turned to look at her again, "I was young, stupid and drunk. It was all over a damned woman, whose name I can't even remember. Obviously,I didn't win, the man stabbed me, fairly deep, and I'm lucky he only got me once. Woke up in the hospital the next day. I deserved it, and I learned my lesson, but I also realized I wasn't indestructible, and that I was damn lucky I lived to tell the tale, and even luckier I didn't get into more trouble than I , it scared the hell out of me, Swan. I started thinking about all the what-ifs and worrying about all the ways I could get killed just doing my job."

"How did you get over it?"

"One day at a time," he said, "I was in the hospital for a bit, then, for a long while, I wasn't allowed to do anything but sit at a desk. It gave me time to think. I also had my brothers to help me figure things out. Eventually, I came around."

"What if I can't find it again?" How could she do her job if she never came around? She'd have to quit and find a safer job. God, what would everyone think?

"Then," he took her hand in his, "you move on."

She was afraid he was going to say that. But he was right. It was better to quit while she was ahead, than to find herself in trouble because she froze.

"It's alright, you know," he continued, "this whole ordeal was much scarier than any bar fight. It shook your whole world."

"I'd be letting a lot of people down," she frowned. Family, friends, colleagues...they'd all think less of her for sure.

"Anyone who gives you grief over doing what's best for you isn't worth your time," he said, "but don't make any hasty desicions. You have time. Take it. You'll find thinking much easier when your head is clear."

How did he know _exactly_ what she needed to hear?

"Mom!" Henry, Roland and Adelaide ran into the room. She could tell that the sugar high was hitting them all already. "Are we staying longer? Roland wants to show me his new video game."

"Go for it," she told him. Not needing to be told twice, all three kids tore off in the direction of Roland's room.

"You're stuck here for at least another hour now," Killian laughed.

"Good thing I have my ice cream," she made a grab for the now unclaimed bowl. There wasn't much left, but it was enough to enjoy.

"Laugh all you want, love," he grinned, "Robin and I made sure to get all the children triple scoops, so you be sure to call and tell me how bedtime works out."

Dammit.


	17. Is It Over?

_He won't go to sleep!_

Emma hoped the extra punctuation would capture just how frustrated she was. Henry was catching his second wind, and it was after ten. She was attempting to sleep, and he was trying to see how high he could jump.

**Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha**

Obviously, Killian didn't have a kid jumping on the bed.

_This isn't over, Jones. _

Oh, she was going to get her revenge, there was no doubt about that. "Henry," she caught her son's attention, "if you stop jumping, I'll let you watch cartoons." She was never one for bartering with him, but he'd been through a lot over the past few days, and she knew he was just getting everything out of his system.

"Kay!" He stopped jumping and plopped down next to his mom. She had him get the remote for the little television in the room and she turned on cartoons for him.

**Good luck with that...**

"Who're you texting?" Henry looked over at her phone.

"Uh," she finished sending a little emote sticking its tongue out, "Killian." She looked up at her son, wondering what was going through his mind.

"You like him," he said. It wasn't a question, more of an observation. Smart kid.

"Yeah," she said cautiously. She knew he'd bring it up eventually, she just didn't know it would be so soon.

"Okay," he stated.

"You're okay with that?" She asked. It was already apparent the kid didn't want her _kissing_ anyone, but it sounded like he didn't mind her having a guy in her life. She guessed it was because Killian came with lots of new little friends for Henry to play with.

"Yup." He furrowed his brow for a moment before speaking again, "how long are you keeping him?"

"What?" That was a strange question.

"Dad doesn't keep girlfriends long," he explained, "he said they're like..." He sighed, as if he were trying to remember exactly what his father said, "You know, food!"

"Food?" Oh God, what was this guy telling him?

"Yeah, they expire," he said.

Jesus Christ.

She wanted to tell him that his father was a fucking moron, then she wanted to call Neal and give the asshole a piece of her mind. Instead, she just did her best to stay calm, "It's not nice to treat people that way."

"So they don't expire?" He asked.

"No," she said, "and I wouldn't have introduced you to someone I wasn't planning on keeping around for a long time."

"Okay." Curiosity satisfied, he turned his attention to the television. As frustrating as it was to realize Neal was more of a dumb ass than she'd previously thought, she had to admit, the "I'm seeing Killian" talk wasn't all that painful. Sometimes, the kid was more rational that a damn adult. How the hell was he _hers?_

Still, she was seething over Neal's habit of parading girlfriends through her son's life. Now the kid was getting an entirely skewed idea of women, and _she_ was the one who was going to have to fix that.

_Who the hell tells their five year old that girlfriends have expiration dates?_

**Let me guess, your ex?**

_Henry just explained it to me. _

She sighed. The poor guy didn't need to be her sounding board. Before she got any more agitated over her ex, she decided it would be best to change the subject. To what, she didn't know, but it was Killian, he'd talk about anything.

_Dammit. I'm sorry. Just needed to vent. I just never thought I'd have to explain that women aren't frozen foods._

**Vent away. I'd be pissed too. **

She was just about to tell him she was done venting when another text came through.

**Personally though, I find you to be rather warm. **

Oh lord. She was blushing. Thank god Henry was engrossed in the television and Killian was across town, hiding behind a cellphone. No one needed to see the inhuman shade of red she was turning.

**Except for maybe your toes in the middle of the night. **

_Idiot_.

**You're only calling me names because I've made you blush.**

How the hell did he know these things?

_Goodnight, Jones._

**Goodnight, fellow idiot.**

It wasn't until Friday that she got any real information. David and Ruby had gathered everyone involved at the Nolan's so they could talk about what they found out. Greg Mendell cracked under Elliot's interrogation. He had admitted to everything, including his desperate attempt to have Emma and her group killed.

Tamara, really had nothing to do with anything, other than the fact that it was her affairs that set Greg off in the first place. Her transfer across the country was an attempt to be free from her husband, who had become increasingly volatile once he discovered her infidelity. The murders were a last ditch effort in revenge.

Nothing like killing your soon to be ex-wife's lovers in an attempt to get a rise out of her. God that was a mouthful.

After searching his home, they'd found even _more_ evidence that he was their killer. Pictures, letters and various things he'd compiled to send to Tamara littered his home. Without a forwarding address, and a restraining order in place, he was having a difficult time finding her.

A phone call from Neal interrupted them. Emma groaned, knowing that a phone call on a Friday meant he was probably canceling on Henry. Quickly, she excused herself so she could take the call. It wasn't like it was a surprise, he had stood Henry up countless times, but it was the reason that got her blood boiling all over again.

"My ex came into town," he explained, "she wanted to see me. I haven't seen her in months, Emma. I thought she was the one."

"Oh, so they _don't_ all expire?" She snapped, a little upset that she wouldn't have the chance to rip into him in person.

He didn't have an explanation for that one, and his silence was a small victory for her.

"You can tell your son you aren't coming then," she told him, because if someone was going to let her son down, _they_ were going to explain it to him. She called Henry from their room, and handed him the phone.

A short conversation with Henry later, and it was done. Her son would be staying with her, which she actually preferred, and her ex would go screw around and shirk his responsibilities, which was nothing new.

The kids went back to playing, and Emma returned to the living room, reclaiming her seat next to Killian. She didn't want to talk about it. Not now, not in front of everyone. He didn't ask her about it, but the look on her face had to have tipped him off. Henry had taken the news in stride, but he had been visibly upset, and she was heartbroken for her son. Killian just put his arm around her, and she knew she'd probably be venting again later.

"Emma," Ruby looked uncomfortable, "there's something else."

Emma watched as both David and Ruby looked at each other. As if they were having some silent conversation. It was bad news, she could tell, and from the look of it, the two were arguing about who would be the one to tell her.

"Can someone say something?" Emma tried to encourage them.

"Seems like Tamara knew Neal," David spit it out, practically choking on the words.

"What?" Okay, that was a bombshell she wasn't expecting.

"From what we found, and what was confessed, it looks like he was next," Ruby said, "but when Mendell screwed up, he knew he wouldn't be able to get away with another murder. After his hit man got caught, he knew it was only a matter of time before they found him."

"Wait..." She started putting the pieces together, "he just said his ex was in town..."

God. Dammit. Tamara had to be the ex he was seeing. After all the murders and interrogations, she really called up someone on her husband's hit list? For a fucking booty call?

"He's safe," David assured her, "Mendell is locked up."

"How could he bring my son around her?" Even though he'd canceled this weekend, she was damn sure that Henry had met Tamara at least once.

"I'm certain he didn't know," Killian said softly, "David said she was adamant she told all those guys she was single."

"And we're just taking her word for it?" Tamara may not have intended for anyone to get hurt, but her actions indirectly ruined countless lives. The bitch didn't even seem sorry for it either. As soon as she was done with NCIS, she was crawling back to Neal. Neal, the dumbass who probably didn't even know he was a target.

"Uh," Ruby looked up when she heard a car pull up, "are you expecting someone?"

"No..." David frowned. He went over to the window and cracked open the blinds, "Emma, I thought that phone call was Neal saying he wasn't coming?"

"You know him too well," she laughed.

"He's here," David informed her.


	18. Heartbroken

"Emma!"

She barely registered someone calling after her. It took seconds to jump out of her seat and run outside. After breaking Henry's heart, he still had the nerve to show up? For what purpose? Emma was done with his excuses, his girlfriends, all of it.

Neal was just coming up the walkway when she slammed the door shut. Henry didn't need to see or hear any of this. "Get back in your truck, and leave. Now."

She heard the door open and close again, and Neal's eyes flickered to whoever joined her. It had to be David, of course he wouldn't leave her to deal with this guy alone.

"I wanted to talk to Henry," he said, "He's my son. It's my right and my weekend."

"Which you canceled!" She shouted, "And let me remind you, the only reason you _have_ a weekend is because I told the damn judge to _let_ you have a weekend. You're the one who chose your whore over your son!"

"Hey!" He shouted back, "I don't call your boy toy any names!"

"My _boy toy_?" God, did he mean Killian? How the _hell_ did he know about him?

"People talk, Emma," He said, "a few of my buddies saw you at the bar a couple weeks ago." Okay, so he didn't have details and was making wild assumptions.

"Doesn't matter." She was livid now. _He_ was the one telling Henry how disposable women were. "How dare you judge me, when you're the one with a new girlfriend every week! Do you really think that's healthy for him? Seeing you with all those different girls? Knowing they're the reason you cancel on him?" She wanted to punch him, but that would only land her in trouble.

"At least I didn't almost get him killed!"

Consequences be damned. Her body protested in agony as she lunged at him, and then, she cried out when someone grabbed her before she could connect her fist with Neal's face.

David was now confronting Neal, and Emma watched, confused for a moment, until she realized it was Killian who had her in his grasp. "Get her inside," Jefferson said as he stepped into view. They all came out?_ What the hell?_

While she was grateful they let her handle it up to this point, part of her was irritated that they didn't let her kick his ass. Even though she knew it was a bad idea, her shoulder and her job would both suffer, it was a long time coming.

Still, when Killian pulled her back inside the house, she didn't protest. Whether it was because she knew they were right, or if it was because her body was now aching from the sudden, rage filled movements, she couldn't be sure.

"I would have let her kick his ass," Ruby commented as Killian sat Emma down on the couch.

"You aren't helping, Ruby," Mary Margaret stated.

"Apologies, love," Killian sat next to Emma, quickly checking on her shoulder.

"I'm fine," she frowned, "David was smart to bring you guys out there. I was already angry, and confronting him like that was a recipe for disaster. How's Henry?"

"Oblivious," Ruby smiled. "I made sure the kids stayed in the other room."

David came back into the house, "Okay, he wants five minutes." Emma was about to protest, but he stopped her. "I'm not telling you what to do, Emma, but we both know this guy can be crooked when he wants to be. He may have cancelled, but we have no real proof of that, so all he would have to do is make a call, and instead of him violating a court order, it would look like you were the one in violation. So, five minutes. I won't let Henry leave my sight. Promise."

"David," Henry was her son, and she should be the one handling this, "Neal is my problem. I can't just leave dealing with his idiocy to you. I can keep everything under control when Henry's around, you know that."

"You're both fired up," Killian reminded her, "if you insist on going out there, perhaps it's still wise to take a third party with you." He didn't have to say, "so you don't kick his ass", that statement was heavily implied.

"Okay," she agreed. She looked at Killian, "you still think all this is worth it?" She did her best to make it sound like a joke, but she couldn't help but wonder if Neal's drama would be too much.

"You still feel the need to ask that? One asshole ex isn't going to scare me off." He paused for a moment, as if considering something. "You only have one, right?" He smirked, and she knew he was joking, but she thanked her lucky stars there was only one.

"Only one I have to deal with," she laughed, "I guess you'll have to meet him eventually. Formally, that is." She really didn't want to think about that right now. _That _particular meeting would likely be messy.

"Guys?" Jefferson opened the door, "this guy is getting impatient out here."

"No time like the present," Killian stood up, "right, Swan?"

"You want to do this now?" No. No. No. She was not ready to deal with more of Neal's hypocritical judgments right now.

"He already knows I exist," Killian reasoned, "it's probably better to get this over with now, rather than let him stew over it and come up with more ridiculous accusations later."

Well, he had a point. "Okay," she stood up and went to the door, still one hundred percent not ready for any of this. "David, can you send Henry out?" David nodded, and Emma took in a deep breath as she stepped outside with Killian. She watched as Jefferson eyeballed Neal one more time before going back into the house.

"Quite the posse you've acquired," Neal quipped, "never knew you to be one who required body guards."

"Cut the crap, Neal."

"Is this the boy toy?"

God dammit, he was adamant about dancing on her last nerve, wasn't he? "He's not a toy," she felt herself tensing up again. Why did she have to do this? Neal never bothered to introduce her to anyone he had around her son, so why should she do him a favor like that? _Because you're the bigger person,_ she reminded herself. Sometimes, she really hated being the bigger person.

"Neal," she tried to hide her annoyance, "this is Killian, Killian, Neal."

"Not shaking your hand buddy," Neal stated, before the offer even made it to the table.

"Wouldn't dream of offering, mate," Killian shot back with a grin.

"You hooked up with a Brit?" Neal raised an eyebrow, giving Killian a once over. Emma tried her best not to groan. The last thing she needed right now was to be a witness to some ridiculous testosterone contest.

"Momma?" Henry opened the door and poked his head out.

"Hey buddy!" Neal grinned, "I came to say bye on my way out."

Henry frowned, obviously still upset with his father. He looked at Emma, "do I hafta come out?"

She wanted to tell him he didn't have to do anything he didn't want to do, but, that would only make things more strained than they already were. "It would be the polite thing to do," was the best she could come up with.

The exasperated sigh that came from her little boy was almost comical. He trudged over to the adults and stood near Emma, hiding behind her a little, as if it was his first time meeting a new person. "You said you weren't coming."

Neal knelt down and did his best to make eye contact with the boy who insisted on hiding from him, "Bud, I need to really talk to you, can you just come over here?"

When Henry looked up at Emma, her heart shattered. He _really _didn't want to talk to his father. "Just give him a few minutes," she told him. Henry rolled his eyes and went over to Neal.

She he wanted to give them space, Neal would never grab Henry and take off, but the kid was so reluctant that she couldn't bear to leave him alone. Finally, she decided it wouldn't hurt to take a few steps back. Killian followed her lead and stepped back with her.

Neal spoke in hushed tones, but Emma could tell from Henry's body language, that the man was saying something the kid didn't like. At one point, Henry had had enough, he stomped his foot and ran into the house.

"What the hell did you tell him?" She stormed up to Neal, now back to wanting to kick his ass. She felt Killian grab her wrist, and she tried to calm down. Suddenly, she was thankful she'd taken that advice about having a third party. With Henry back in the house, it was exceptionally harder to keep herself under control.

Neal stood up and frowned, "I just told him I had to go out of town for a couple months."

"That's an _eternity_ to a child! Where the hell are your priorities?"

"I love her, Emma!"

It was a shocking confession, especially since Emma didn't think he even knew what love was. When had he even seen this girl last? She'd been gone for a least a couple months, and had been seeing God only knew how many other men. She was pretty willing to bet that Neal didn't know anything about Tamara's husband, the affairs or how close he came to being another one of her cases. "The woman whose husband had you on his hit list?" She didn't have a chance to stop the words, they just flew out of her mouth. The look on his face was priceless, but she was so full of regret at throwing that at him, that appreciating his surprise wasn't an option.

"_Husband? Hit list?_" He asked, visibly dumbfounded.

Emma nodded slowly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" Fuck. She hated him right now, but hurting him like that? That was hitting below the belt.

"I have to go," he said, "see you in a couple months."

She wanted to stop him, explain herself and apologize, but Killian pulled her back, "let him go," he said, "Chasing after him isn't going to make anything better. Besides, it's _her _responsibility to answer his questions. Not yours."

Tamara _did_ owe it to Neal to tell the truth, whether she did or not wasn't really anyone's business, save for the parties involved. It really wasn't any of Emma's concern, and she decided that wasn't what really mattered anyway. What mattered was the fact that her son was probably heartbroken, and she didn't know how to fix it.


	19. Okay

David was the first to greet her when she walked back in the door. "Henry came running in and locked himself in the bathroom. What happened?"

"Neal happened," Emma sighed, "I'll get him." She went over to the bathroom and knocked on the door, "hey kid, open up. Let's talk, okay?"

The door opened slowly, and Emma held her hand out for him. He took it, and followed her to the nursery. She shut the door, and sat down in the rocking chair, "come on," she tugged at him and smiled. Henry climbed up into her lap and she wrapped him into a hug. "I love you. You know that, right?" Henry started to cry and it took every ounce of strength not to cry with him.

"Yeah." His voice wavered as he sobbed.

"Wanna talk about it?" She didn't want to push him, but she knew it would be better if he'd let it out.

"Nuh-uh," he hiccupped.

"Okay," she said.

They sat in silence, she rocked him as he cried, the occasional, heart wrenching sob escaping. It wasn't the first time Neal let him down, but it was the first time he actually told Henry why he was ditching him, and the first time he was canceling more than just a weekend. Emma hated lying, but still wished that Neal hadn't been so honest about his reasons.

"Are you gonna leave too?" He asked suddenly.

"Why would you ask that?"

"'Cuz you have a boyfriend now," Henry explained, "dad said he's in love, and that's why he's leaving."

God dammit Neal.

"That's not how it works," she told him, "You are the most important person in the world to me. No one will ever take me away from you. No matter what."

"Even if you fall in love?"

"I could never love anyone who wasn't good for the both of us, and if they really loved me, they wouldn't try and take me away from you," she said. Last night, he was completely fine with her keeping Killian around, and now, she wasn't sure what he thought. She said she'd never leave Henry, and she'd never given him any reason to think she would, but Neal had put that doubt in his head. How long would it take to fix that?

"You promise?" He looked up at her, his eyes red rimmed and watery.

"Pinky swear," she held up her pinky for him. He smiled and shook pinkies with her.

"Can I go back and play now?" He asked, resilient as always.

"Yeah," She let go, so he could climb down.

He ran to the door, but before he opened it, he turned back to her, "it's okay if you keep him," he said.

"Thanks," she smiled, grateful that she'd gotten through to him. The doubt might still be there, but it would fade in time, whether Neal returned or not.

"Just no kissing. That's gross." He was just the perfect mix of five year old and mini-adult, all in one adorably sweet package.

He left the room before she could respond, but she laughed anyway as she listened to the pitter patter of his feet running towards their room. Did he really know what a comedian he could be?

A few moments later, Killian knocked on the door and looked into the room, "Everything alright, love?"

"For now," she sighed. This was going to be a challenge. Skipping weekends was one thing, taking off for months at a time was another. Neal had never done that before. Not to Henry, anyway. The way he said "a couple of months" sounded so noncommittal, like he wasn't sure if he was coming back. "You don't think he'd completely abandon his son, do you?" She said it as quietly as possible.

"I don't know the man well enough to make that assumption," Killian said. He walked over to her and held out his hands. When she took them in her own, he helped her up out of the chair, and pulled her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him and just stood there for a moment, taking comfort in his embrace.

"He's flakey," she finally said, "but he's never once given me any reason to doubt that he loves Henry. Until now." Jesus, how could he hurt his own son like this? After telling her his own sorry tale of being abandoned by his father, why would he turn around and do the same thing?

"Sweetheart," she felt him squeeze her a little tighter and she refused to complain when her shoulder protested the gesture. "No matter what happens with his father, Henry has you, and that boy has no doubt in his mind about how much you love him."

That part was true. The second she found out she was pregnant, she swore she would never give her child a reason to doubt her. Right now, it was probably their bond that was keeping him going. "This is going to be difficult," she sighed, "he's going to be fine on some days, but on others, he's going to cry for him." The crying days would be the worst. She knew from experience, there was little to stop the ache of a broken heart.

"You can't fix everything," he said, "but you can always be there, and that's what's important."

"I really wish you would have let me kick his ass," she stated.

"To be perfectly honest," he grinned, "I would have loved to step aside, but I was under strict orders from Dave, and you don't need the criminal record, darling."

She giggled, "Yeah, if I get a record, it's going to be because I did something amazing. Punching an ex just isn't worth the hassle."

"Are we talking robbing a bank amazing or full on take over the world amazing?" He smirked when she looked up at him, eyebrow raised and a grin on her face. "I have to know what to charge you with when I'm hauling you away in cuffs, don't I?"

Emma rolled her eyes, "If you wanted to cuff me, all you had to do was say so. No need to get me turned towards a life of crime."

"Oh really?" he grinned as he gave her a quick kiss.

"Henry said I could keep you," she informed him, "but he also said kissing is gross, and therefore not allowed."

"Quite the set of rules that lad has," he laughed.

"Rules are meant to be broken, right?"

She didn't have to tell him twice, the instant the words left her mouth, his lips were on hers.

Even though there was so much that was still a blur, Emma knew that this was right.

This was real.

No matter what happened, they would be okay.


	20. Epilogue

_One year later..._

it wasn't perfect.

But it was.

As the days faded into weeks, then into months, the Mendell case became nothing but a distant memory. Life didn't go back to normal, instead, it changed, for the better. Emma had finally accepted that she had truly found home. Not just in Killian, but in the entire family that had embraced her, accepting her as one of their own. Even Regina, despite their rocky start, had become a close friend.

Emma was relieved to find her edge again, returning to NCIS after a brief vacation. Killian still occasionally teased her for being married to her job, but she'd gotten much better at putting the files down and relaxing.

Not long after he cleared out his place on post, Killian found a nice home to settle down in, halfway between the Nolan's and the Locksley's. Jefferson eventually moved in with Elsa, after her sister and brother in law found their own place. Emma stayed with David and Mary Margaret for a while. They insisted she save her money for a house, she insisted she was taking up too much space, neither were willing to budge on the subject. Rent money was paid and then mysteriously returned. (The same check must have floated around the house for weeks.) Eventually, Killian dared to ask her to move in with him. Even though at the time, they had only been together a few months, she realized there was no place she wanted to be more. Emma was happy to find that she no longer felt the need to close off whenever they moved forward. It wasn't long after she moved in, that they got married, much to everyone's surprise. Henry and Adelaide both approved, but Henry still insisted that kissing was gross, and therefore, still not allowed.

It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, there were times when there were arguments, tears and slammed doors, but she never doubted the love they shared. Silent treatments never lasted long, and apologies were always quick to arrive.

Neal had reappeared almost two months after he left, as promised, but the damage had already been done. Henry was angry, and Neal still flaked out, causing the wound to never fully heal. There were times when her son would still cry for his father, and other times, when he would pretend the man didn't exist. After six months of arguing, she did the one thing she thought she'd never do, and changed the custody order. It was an uphill climb, but despite Neal's protests, his history spoke for itself. She tried to explain that she wasn't taking him away, that Neal could see Henry any time he wanted, all he had to do was call, but his ego had taken a hit, and the calls were few and far between.

But they still had this family, and even with the ups and downs that came with it, they were happy. It may have not been one they born into, but it was one they had chosen, and for some reason, that made it better. At first, Killian had tried to help her find her parents, but it wasn't long before she decided to end her search. It didn't hurt as much as she thought it would. She _had _a family, she remembered insisting, when he asked if she was sure. She was also neck deep in information on trying to find Killian's brother. He didn't know she was looking, she was afraid of disappointing him if she failed.

Liam Jones arrived mere days after she'd first made contact with him. It was an unexpected surprise, as she hadn't even told Killian she had found him. When the men met again for the first time since childhood, it was like a huge weight lifted off both their shoulders, and just like that, their family added another member.

Now, Emma lounged on the deck at Robin and Regina's, watching her family completely maul each other over a silly flag. James sat on her lap and babbled in excitement, as if he knew he would be joining the game as soon as he could walk just a little better.

Suddenly, Killian ran up to the deck and stole the little boy from her. "The deck is neutral, Jones!" She scolded him. Like that ever worked when he was up to no good.

"Just needed leverage," he grinned mischievously as he took off towards the field again.

Between double crossing and hostage situations, it was a wonder no real fights ever broke out at these things. She laughed as he threatened a tickle attack if the flag wasn't handed over, and she laughed even harder when David peeked out of his hiding place and sniped him, landing a Nerf dart right square in the middle of his back.

"That's three!" Mary Margaret exclaimed, reclaiming her child. Somewhere in the distance, Grace and Henry were running like mad for base, using the negotiation as a distraction to bring their team to victory.

"You're all bloody crazy," Liam said, as he attempted to recover from his first game. He'd taken to visiting as often as possible, until he was able to permanently move to the states.

Killian snickered at his brother, who was quickly catching on. Then, he went back up to the deck to Emma, kissing her as he placed his hand over the barely there bump that had just started to form. "I guess next time I'll think twice before knocking up my best player," he teased.

"You really don't think these things through, do you?" She teased back.

At first, he had freaked out when she told him, memories of losing his first wife bubbling to the surface with a vengeance. But it wasn't long before he had gone from completely terrified to elated. (Having the doctor convince him that she was just fine may have helped speed that along.)

Emma had everything she thought she'd never find. The feeling of being unwanted had long since vanished from her heart.

Every moment, good or bad was a moment shared with those she loved, and she wouldn't trade it for the world.

It wasn't perfect.

But it was.


End file.
